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UNIVERSITY PARK -- Penn State guards Tay Valladay and Ashley Owusu put on a show inside the Bryce Jordan Center on Thursday night, combining for 41 points as the Penn State women's basketball team returned to .500 in Big Ten play with an 80-67 win over the Purdue Boilermakers.
Penn State improved to 12-5 overall and moved even in Big Ten Conference play, rising to 3-3 ahead of Sunday's test against Nebraska. Penn State recorded its second consecutive home victory against the Boilermakers dating to last season's meeting, moving to 24-35 against Purdue all-time. In defeat, the Boilermakers fell to 9-8 overall and 2-4 in the conference.
Penn State lit the scoreboard up from the floor by shooting 51 percent, the ninth game PSU has shot 50%-or-better this season and third time against B1G foes in 2023-24. The Lady Lions took advantage of Purdue giveaways and racked up an impressive 21-13 differential in points off turnovers against the Boilermakers.
The Lady Lions totaled 19 assists on 30 baskets compared to just 11 from Purdue. Penn State managed to double Purdue up in transition points, 16-8.
Valladay booked her seventh-straight game in double figures and her second 20-point game since transferring to Penn State, finishing with 22 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the floor and 2-for-3 from beyond the arc.
Owusu made her BJC debut and saw 27 minutes of work off the bench, connecting on seven field goal attempts and a long-range jumper to finish with a season-high 19 points. The Woodbridge, Virginia, native has booked back-to-back outings with at least 18 points, five rebounds and four assists, leading the Lady Lions in multiple statistical categories two games in a row.
Penn State controlled the opening tip, but Purdue booked the first points of the evening at the charity stripe. Each squad exchanged misses from long range, but a sweet reverse layup from Brigham on a feed from Kapinus got the Lady Lions on the board.
Owusu entered the contest around two-and-a-half minutes in, drilling her first jumper of the night from mid-range.
The squads exchanged buckets back and forth over the next couple of minutes, with another Owusu make leading to an 11-6 Lady Lion advantage at the media break. Purdue pulled back within one point of the lead, but Hall called glass on a turnaround jumper to give PSU a 15-12 lead.
The Boilermakers managed to deadlock the ballgame at 16-all, but a Valladay mid-range bucket found the bottom of the net on a pick-and-roll drive to give Penn State an 18-16 lead through the first quarter.
Game notes: Bellwood-Antis graduate Alli Campbell finished with five points on a 2-for-4 showing from the floor. She played 20 minutes. … The Lady Lions game with Nebraska on Sunday at home will tip off at 1 p.m.
PURDUE (9-8): Caitlyn Harper 5-8 3-3 13, Stevenson 3-11 7-8 13, Ellis 3-10 0-0 7, Madison Layden 0-4 0-0 0, Terry 0-2 0-0 0, Alaina Harper 1-1 0-0 2, Reynolds 0-1 0-0 0, Jones 6-13 10-12 23, McKenna Layden 0-1 0-0 0, Monson 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 1-4 0-0 3, Swanson 1-4 3-4 6, Totals 20-59 23-27 67
PENN STATE (12-5): Brigham 4-6 0-0 8, Ciezki 1-5 2-2 5, Kapinus 2-4 0-0 4, Marisa 1-5 0-0 2, Valladay 7-11 6-6 22, Hall 3-3 0-2 6, Pinto 2-3 1-2 5, Campbell 2-4 0-0 5, Murray 1-1 0-0 3, Oden 0-2 1-2 1, Owusu 7-15 4-4 19, Totals 30-59 14-18 80
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Purdue 16 11 13 27 — 67
Penn State 18 19 21 22 — 80
3-Point Goals--Purdue 4-15 (Stevenson 0-1, Ellis 1-5, Ma.Layden 0-3, Jones 1-1, Mc.Layden 0-1, Smith 1-1, Swanson 1-3), Penn St. 6-21 (Ciezki 1-4, Marisa 0-3, Valladay 2-3, Pinto 0-1, Campbell 1-2, Murray 1-1, Oden 0-2, Owusu 1-5). Assists--Purdue 11 (C.Harper 4), Penn St. 19 (Owusu 4). Fouled Out--None. Rebounds--Purdue 35 (C.Harper 8), Penn St. 37 (Kapinus 5, Owusu 5). Total Fouls--Purdue 20, Penn St. 25. Technical Fouls--None. A--2,266.