On a night devoted to the Purdue women’s basketball seniors, the Boilermakers got everything the four seniors had to give and then some before falling 93-88 to Penn State at Mackey Arena on Wednesday.
Seniors Caitlyn Harper, Jeanae Terry, Abbey Ellis and Madison Layden combined for 70 points, 29 rebounds, 18 assists, four steals and two blocks in the loss for Purdue (12-16, 5-12). Despite the result, the performances put a smile on the face of head coach Katie Gearlds as she remembered what all four mean to Purdue women’s basketball.
“The last three years they’ve been the reason why we won games and have been competitive. On top of that, our culture is better now than when I first walked in. Maybe we got there too fast last year, getting to the tournament but we did it because of these kids. This year has not been great with wins, but our culture is better because of them. These four are beloved and it has trickled down to our sophomores and freshmen. Our freshmen are going to forever remember playing with those four. We are going to win championships here and those four are the blocks of what we are chasing,” Gearlds said.
Leading the way was Harper, who scored 29 points on 12-of-16 shooting and added eight rebounds, a steal and a block before leaving the game late in the fourth quarter with an apparent knee injury.
Trailing 80-77 with just under five minutes remaining, Harper was fouled from behind when a Penn State defender fell on the back of her leg. Harper was in pain immediately, as she rolled around and grabbed her knee. Penn State would then score the next eight points to give the Nittany Lions some breathing room.
Gearlds became emotional in the postgame interview, describing what she said to Harper when she came out to check on her.
“A lot of thank you’s. A lot of love you’s. She’s a special kid. I would say if that’s the last game she played, she played a damn good game,” Gearlds said.
Purdue women’s basketball, PSU trade baskets early and often
Both teams came out of the gate trading baskets, as Penn State (17-11, 8-9) matched Purdue’s offensive intensity every single time. Five different Penn State players finished in double figures, led by Ashley Owusu, who scored 23.
Purdue women’s basketball had a lead or was able to knot the game five different times in the first half, before Penn State went on a 9-2 run to take a 47-40 halftime lead.
“There were some blown assignments on ball screen coverages where we just weren’t locked in. In the first half I thought they made some shots and we were able to keep place but we couldn’t disrupt their rhythm. In second half, locked in a little bit better in the third quarter. In fourth quarter, we guarded well for 24 seconds and then they hit a shot. Penn State was desperate, hungry and playing for NCAA lives and they played like that on the defensive end,” Gearlds said.
The Boilermakers watched Penn State open the third quarter by going up nine before the Boilermakers utilized a 14-6 run to knot things up at 57-57, thanks, in part, to the play of Harper.
“Offensively last two games we’ve been pretty good. The ball is moving and we are playing with confidence. We’ve been pretty solid defensively. Just couldn’t quite finish possessions off and it’s not for a lack of trying. You have to give PSU credit for making a lot of plays,” Gearlds said.
In addition, to Harper, Ellis scored 18 points, while Terry had seven points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks. Layden contributed with 16 points and seven assists.
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