Michigan
22-8,11-7Big Ten
Penn State
14-17,4-14Big Ten
Wolverines Hang On Against Penn State, Advance at B1G Tourney
3/2/2023 6:45:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- The No. 17-ranked University of Michigan women's basketball team went up by nine points with just over two minutes remaining and got a defensive stop on Penn State's final possession, wrapping up a 63-61 win over the Lady Lions in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday (March 2) at The Target Center.
After Penn State tied the game at 52 in the opening minute of the fourth quarter, U-M used a 7-0 run and held the Lady Lions off the board for nearly six minutes. Laila Phelia hit a three-pointer to beat the shot clock, giving Michigan a 61-52 lead with 3:15 remaining.
Penn State scored on its next possession, but Emily Kiser countered with a bucket of her own at the 2:09 mark of the final quarter to push Michigan's lead back to nine.
The Lady Lions scored seven straight points, trimming Michigan's lead to two with 14 seconds left. U-M turned the ball over on the alternating possession, giving Penn State an opportunity to tie the game. The Wolverine defense stepped up, keeping Penn State from scoring to complete a 63-61 win.
Michigan had four double-figure scorers, with Phelia and Kiser each turning in 13 points. Leigha Brown just missed a double-double, going for 12 points and nine assists. Elise Stuck hit double figures for the first time in her career, hitting all five of her shots for 11 points off the bench. U-M shot 46.3 percent from the floor and held Penn State to 42.4 percent, with the rebound battle tied at 34.
After a back-and-forth first quarter ended in a 14-14 tie, Kiser scored out of the quarter break on a perfectly executed play for a 16-14 Michigan lead. Penn State answered by scoring five straight for a 19-16 lead.
Brown found Stuck for a baseline jumper that got the friendly roll as time expired, giving Michigan a 30-29 lead at the half. Brown led the way for Michigan with nine first-half points, with Williams chipping in six.
Maddie Nolan hit a triple out of the halftime break for Michigan's largest lead of the game, 33-29, just 10 seconds into the third. Penn State regained a 38-37 lead with 6:45 left in the third quarter on left-corner triple.
The teams went back-and-forth over the remainder of the third quarter, with Phelia hitting a jumper as time expired to end the third, giving Michigan a 52-50 lead
Michigan's 6-0 spurt in the opening stages of the fourth quarter featured a Brown free throw, a Kiser layup and a three-pointer from Stuck, forcing a PSU timeout with 7:30 remaining. U-M scored again on the Phelia triple to complete the 9-0 run, setting up Penn State's run to end the quarter that came up short.
U-M will face No. 4 seed Ohio State tomorrow (Friday, March 3) at approximately 2 p.m. CT/3 p.m. ET in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament. The game will air on the Big Ten Network.
