By Tommy Parker
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
On opening night of the basketball season, both Towson and Penn State were sloppy — committing 26 and 21 turnovers respectively.
But a second-half surge — 55 points in two quarters — filled with strong shooting, clutch free throws and good defense was enough to give Penn State a 73-67 road victory Tuesday at SECU Arena.
After trailing 24-18 at halftime, Penn State outscored Towson 25-13 in the decisive third quarter and never trailed again.
First-year head coach Carolyn Kieger said she was proud of her team’s toughness in overcoming adversity. This was Kieger’s 100th career win and first at Penn State — with the first 99 being at Marquette.
Freshman guard Makenna Marisa scored all 15 of her points in the second half, including 8 free throws and a late layup after a steal to give Penn State a 65-60 lead.
“She was a different player in the second half,” Kieger said. “She just had to get the jitters out of the way.”
It wasn’t just Marisa making big plays and clutch shots from the charity stripe. Penn State shot 26-32 from the free throw line — 22-26 in the second half.
The Nittany Lions shot 42.1% from the field in the third quarter and 50% in the fourth, a big turnaround from their 19.4% shooting in the first half.
The top three returning scorers for Penn State also scored in double figures, with Siyeh Frazier scoring 15, Kamaria McDaniel scoring 14, and Alisia Smith scoring 11. The four of them combined for 55 of the team’s 73 points.
Towson also had big scoring nights from its top scorers from a year ago — Q. Murray (15 points), Nukiya Mayo (18 points) and Kionna Jeter (18 points). But Towson shot just 32.4 % and was sloppy throughout the game.
“We did some great things,” said head coach Dianne Richardson. “We slept on a few things…We know we have to work hard and move onto the next one.”
Richardson said the team was expecting Penn State’s pressure defense and thought they handled it well, but it was Penn State’s presence in the paint that was the difference.
While combining for 51 of the team’s 67 points, Towson’s leading trio also combined for 14 of the team’s 26 turnovers.
Only four players are returning from last season’s conference championship winning team, meaning seven of the 11 players on Towson’s roster are new. Murray said they were still trying to build chemistry.
Richardson said the chemistry will evolve with floor reps, and Jeter said with more practice the team’s chemistry will grow.
Her goal for the team: Play up tempo and score in transition. Towson forced 21 Penn State turnovers, 13 of which were from steals.
Down the stretch it was much of the same: Towson turnovers leading to Penn State scores whether it be in transition or from the line. Both teams will look to learn from tonight and make adjustments as they continue their seasons.
Penn State has a home stretch the next two weeks as Rider, Fordham, La Salle, Clemson, and George Mason all travel to Bryce Jordan Center.
The Tigers travel to California to take on San Diego State and the University of San Diego.