Coatney's Call: Penn State Preview

#17 Nebraska vs. Penn State
Thursday, Jan. 15, 6 p.m. (central)
Pinnacle Bank Arena (Lincoln, Neb.)
TV: BTN (Kevin Kugler, Stephanie White)
Radio: Husker Sports Network (Matt Coatney-PBP; Jeff Griesch-Analyst)
107.3 FM, Lincoln; 93.3 FM, Omaha; 93.9 FM, 102.1 FM, McCook, 94.1 FM, Scottsbluff, 1310 AM, Fairbury
Internet: Free live audio on Huskers.com

No. 17 Huskers Return Home to Face Lady Lions
After starting Big Ten Conference play with back-to-back losses, the Nebraska women’s basketball team rallied to win both games in a two-game road swing last week. Both NU wins featured rallies late in the second half. Last Sunday afternoon in Champaign, the Huskers trailed Illinois by six points with just over eight minutes left in the game before closing on a 15-4 run in the final 6:30 to defeat the Illini, 58-53. Junior point guard Rachel Theriot scored 20 of her game-high 27 points in the second half.

With the win, Nebraska improved to 12-3 overall and returns home to begin a two-game home stand Thursday when they host the Penn State Lady Lions at 6 p.m. (central) at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln in a game that will be televised nationally on the Big Ten Network.

It’s hard to imagine that a Penn State team that has won or shared three straight Big Ten titles and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen last season is 3-13 overall and 0-5 in conference play this year. Last Saturday’s 71-51 loss in State College to Rutgers perfectly illustrates the type of season the Lady Lions have endured.

PSU turned the ball over an astronomical 38 times against the Scarlet Knights’ pressing man-to-man defense, which resulted in the Lady Lions being outscored 36-4 in points off of turnovers. The turnovers were the most by a Penn State team since 1991. Penn State averages 24.6 turnovers per game in their five Big Ten games. PSU heads into Thursday night’s game in Lincoln on a six-game losing streak. Their only wins this season came at home against Towson, Wagner and Rider.

The Lady Lions are winless in games played outside of State College.

Redshirt freshman Lindsey Spann has had to shoulder the bulk of the scoring load for Penn State due to the graduation loss of four starters, including two-time Big Ten Player of the Year Maggie Lucas. Spann, a 5-6 guard, missed all of 2013-14 due to a knee injury. She leads the team in scoring (16.3 ppg) and three-pointers (20), shooting 30 percent from long-range. Spann had 18 points in Saturday’s loss to Rutgers, the 15th time she has produced a double-digit scoring game.

Redshirt sophomore Sierra Moore sat our all of last season after transferring from Duke, where she played in 25 games as a freshman. The Pennsylvania state high school player of the year in 2012, Moore joins Spann as the only two Lady Lions to start every game. Moore is second on the team in scoring (11.4 ppg) and leads the team with 59 assists.

Candice Agee, a 6-6 junior center, has started 12 of the 16 Penn State games this season. She is the third Penn State player to average double figure scoring (10.1 ppg) and leads the team in blocked shots (28).

Sophomore guard Keke Sevillian has started the last four games and averages 2.4 points per game. Senior Tori Waldner, a 6-5 center, rounds out PSU’s probable starting lineup. She also has started the last four games and adds 4.4 points per game.

Coquese Washington has won three Big Ten Coach-of-the-Year awards in her eight seasons as head coach at Penn State. She has won or shared three straight Big Ten regular-season titles and has taken her team to two NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen appearances. As a player, Washington was a four-year starting point guard for Muffet McGraw and was the team captain on Notre Dame’s first-ever NCAA Tournament team.

Penn State leads the all-time series with Nebraska 5-2, but the Huskers won the last meeting in dominating fashion 94-74 at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln last February. NU hit 16 three-pointers, including a school-record-tying seven by Tear’a Laudermill who scored a career-high 27 points.

I cordially invite you to join Jeff Griesch and me for Nebraska women’s basketball on the Husker Sports Network. Our radio broadcast Thursday evening begins with the pre-game show at 5:45 p.m. (central) with the tip-off scheduled for 6:02 p.m. on the Husker Sports Network including KBBK (B107.3) in Lincoln, KFFF 93.3 in Omaha, KGMT 1310 in Fairbury, KZMC 102.1 in McCook, KNEB 94.1 in Scottsbluff, and many others. Fans inside Pinnacle Bank Arena can listen to the live Husker Sports Network broadcast delay-free on 87.7 MHZ via an in-arena transmitter. All Husker Women’s Basketball broadcasts are also available for free worldwide on the internet at www.huskers.com. I hope you can join us.

There are a number of ways to get enhanced information about our broadcast and Husker Women’s Basketball via social media. You can learn more about the team on the Nebraska Women’s Basketball Facebook page or follow the team on their official Twitter page @huskerswbb. I also invite you to friend me on Facebook (Matt Coatney) or follow me on Twitter @coatman1.

Go Big Red!

Matt