Here are 5 opponents to watch on the Penn State Lady Lions’ 2021-22 Big Ten schedule
The Penn State women’s basketball team has some marquee matchups to look forward to in 2021-22.
A majority come from within the Big Ten conference, following a year in which the Lady Lions went 6-13 in league play. This upcoming season brings a new hope for Penn State women’s basketball and some fresh faces. Most of all, it brings a number of new challenges and the belief that they can overcome the obstacles that they face with a budding program under third-year head coach Carolyn Kieger.
The Lady Lions are set to play an 18-game Big Ten schedule with five “double-play” opponents and eight “single-play” opponents. The Big Ten announced this format on June 17. Maryland, Michigan State, Nebraska, Northwestern and Rutgers will play Penn State both at home and away. The Lady Lions will take on Indiana, Ohio State Purdue and Wisconsin on the road. Penn State will host Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Minnesota. Times and dates have not yet been announced.
Here is a look at the toughest Big Ten opponents the Lady Lions are set to face this season.
5. Northwestern
Penn State will face off against Northwestern both at home and away this upcoming season. The Lady Lions dropped their Jan. 17 matchup 67-50. Northwestern shot 29-for-63 (46 percent) from the field, while Penn State shot just 17-for-46 (37 percent). The hope is for the Lady Lions to get more consistency on shots. With the additions of Notre Dame transfer Allie Campbell and George Washington transfer Ali Brigham, the Lady Lions should have a better opportunity to attack the basket. Northwestern finished 16-9 on the year and fifth in the Big Ten during the 2020-21 season.
Player to Watch: Veronica Burton
Rising senior Veronica Burton is the de facto team leader, having been named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year by both coaches and media. It was her second consecutive year of winning the award. She averaged 16.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
4. Michigan
Penn State didn’t have the opportunity to face off against Michigan last season after a COVID-19 cancellation. The Wolverines finished the regular season ranked as the No. 14 team in the nation by the coaches and the 16th-ranked program per The Associated Press, with a 16-6 record, which was fourth-best in the Big Ten. The Wolverines gained an at-large bid to the NCAA Women’s Tournament, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen where they narrowly lost 78-75 against Baylor.
Player to Watch: Naz Hamilton
At 6-foot-2, Hamilton dominates from the post with a .623 field goal percentage and averaged 23.9 points per game. Hamilton attacks the glass with 11.4 rebounds per game and shoots .754 percent from the free throw line.
3. Rutgers
Rutgers went 14-5 on the year with a 10-3 Big Ten record and struggled with COVID-19 cancellations throughout the season. The Scarlet Knights had seven consecutive games canceled beginning with Purdue, then Ohio State, Northwestern, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan and Indiana. The Scarlet Knights overcame their layoff with a 78-62 win against Nebraska to kick off a nine-game winning streak. They were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament BYU in a 69-66 game.
Players to watch: Kiera Sanderlin
The freshman was an All-Texas selection, a Texas state champion during the 2018-19 season and recorded 544 points, 102 assists and 142 steals during that season. In her junior season, Sanderlin had 16.7 points per game and finished with 958 career points. Sanderlin pounded the boards with five per game and had three steals and 2.5 assists per game. She should add a punch to a team that lost a majority of its scoring talent this offseason.
2. Indiana
Indiana had a strong season with a 21-6 record and a 16-2 record in conference play, placing second in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers had a stretch from Jan. 31 to March 6 where they won nine straight games. Indiana defeated No. 11 Michigan on Feb. 18 and turned around a week and some change later to defeat a 14th-ranked Ohio State team on Feb. 27. Penn State dropped a home game against the 19th-ranked Hoosiers, 85-64, on Jan. 7. Indiana’s Grace Berger recorded her second career triple-double with 15 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. and Mackenzie Holmes had 27 points in their win.
Players to Watch: Mackenzie Holmes and Grace Berger
The duo works in conjunction with one another as a pick-and-roll combo. Berger averages 15.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game and had a total of 124 assists on the season, many of them going to Holmes on the block. Holmes averaged a team-highs of 17.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. On the defensive end, Holmes led the team with 81 blocks on the year, while Berger was tied for the team lead in steals with 31 on the year.
1. Maryland
Maryland was the powerhouse of the Big Ten conference. They went 26-3, finishing with a 17-1 in-conference record to rank No. 1 in the Big Ten. Not to mention, they finished 10-0 at home, 9-1 on the road and 7-2 in neutral site games. While Texas caught the Terps at the wrong moment in a Sweet Sixteen matchup, with Maryland losing 64-61, they were mostly dominant throughout the season.
Penn State dropped a home game to Maryland, 96-82, on New Year’s Eve and an away game, 88-61, on March 6.
Player to watch: Everyone
Maryland can attack from any point of the court. In the backcourt, Ashley Owusu and Katie Benzan crush opponents at both guard positions with intense defense (Owusu had 37 steals and Benzan had 45), 3-point shooting ability from Benzan (50 percent) and Owusu’s slashing ability (.493 from the field). When it comes to the frontcourt, Diamond Miller, Chloe Bibby, Angel Reese and Mimi Collins provide scoring and rebounding from the interior. When the team gets hot, it’s hard for them to lose — shooting .400 from 3-point land and .496 as a team in all field goals. The Terps averaged a whopping 90.8 points per game, ranking No. 1 in the country. The next closest team was Iowa, which finished with 86.1 points per game.
With the NCAA’s COVID-19 rules, they’re all returning for one more run at a national championship.
This story was originally published June 27, 2021 at 11:54 AM.
