(UW ATHLETICS) MADISON – A back-and-forth game ended with an electric fourth-quarter comeback for the Badgers as the Wisconsin women’s basketball team (11-4, 3-1 B1G) defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions (7-8, 0-4 B1G), 74-73, on Sunday afternoon at the Kohl Center to extend its home win streak to nine games.
Kyrah Daniels led all scorers with 20 points, shooting 8-for-16 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line, while Destiny Howell added 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Breauna Ware also had a strong performance with 12 points, including going 2-for-3 from the three-point line.
How it happened
The game opened with a high-scoring, back-and-forth first half, as UW entered halftime with a 40-38 advantage over the Nittany Lions. Wisconsin’s 40 points are the second most it has scored in a half this season, and Kyrah Daniels led the charge with 10 points in the first 20 minutes – her fourth game in a row reaching double-figure points.
In the first quarter, both teams traded baskets until it was tied 16-16 with 1:47 left, before the Badgers went on a 4-0 run to end the opening frame. The Badgers extended their lead to eight unanswered points at the start of the second quarter to lead 24-16, before Penn State got on the board for the first time 1:16 into the second. Wisconsin continued to push offensively, outscoring PSU 6-2 over 30 seconds to extend the score to a 30-20 Badger advantage.
Midway through the second quarter, the Nittany Lions went on an eight-point run of their own to close the gap, before closing the half with a 6-0 run to make it a two-point game heading into halftime.
The game remained a back-and-forth affair early in the third quarter, with Breauna Ware making Wisconsin’s first three-point basket of the game, 5:01 into the frame, to make it a 51-46 game in favor of UW. In the final five minutes of the quarter, the Nittany Lions outscored the Badgers 17-9 to take a 63-55 lead ahead of the final frame.
Wisconsin battled back in the fourth, chipping away at Penn State’s lead while only allowing the Nittany Lions to record three points in the first eighty minutes of the quarter. A 12-0 run from the Badgers began 3:14 into the quarter and ended with 1:12 left of game time as UW battled from down, 66-59, to pull forward and lead, 71-66.
The final minute of game time was tense, as Penn State pulled to a three-point deficit before Kyrah Daniels padded Wisconsin’s lead. In a thrilling final 14 seconds of the contest, Penn State made a layup, before UW added a free throw to make the score 74-70. With two seconds remaining, the Nittany Lions made a three-pointer, but were unable to recover the ball to take one more shot and try and take the lead as UW won, 74-73.
As a team, Wisconsin shot 47% from the field (29-62), 18% from beyond the arc (3-17) and 87% from the free throw line (13-15).
Penn State shot 48% (27-56) from the field, 35% from beyond the arc (7-20) and 75% from the free throw line (12-16).
Notes to Know
- The Badgers outscored the Nittany Lions in points in the paint, 42-34
- Four Badgers reached double digits, with Daniels leading the way in her second straight 20-point game
Up Next
Wisconsin will host Purdue on Thursday, Jan. 8, at 6:30 p.m. CT.
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