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UNIVERSITY PARK -- Offensive efforts from Moriah Murray and Gracie Merkle, with a combined 49 points, guided the Penn State women's basketball team to a 90-68 win over Bucknell in the 2024-25 season opener Monday night at the Jordan Center.
Murray set career highs with eight 3-pointers and 28 points while Merkle notched her 20th double-double of her career with 21 points and 13 rebounds.
Penn State improved its non-conference home court winning streak to 12-straight games dating back to Dec. 21, 2022.
Murray, a redshirt sophomore, shot 50 percent from beyond the arc on her way to smashing her previous career highs of 18 points and four 3-pointers. While it was Murray getting the job done from the outside, it was Merkle doing the work down low. She recorded a double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds in addition to leading the interior defensive effort with four blocks. Grace Hall joined the pair in double-figures with 13 points, shooting 4-of-5 from the field and 5-of-6 from the line.
Penn State's Alli Campbell, a Bellwood-Antis graduate, started and finished with seven points on 3-for-5 shooting from the field. She led the Lady Lions with six assists.
Two other players made stellar first impressions in their debuts for Penn State. Graduate guard Gabby Elliott poured in nine points, while freshman Talayah Walker scored seven points thanks in large part to a perfect 5-for-5 showing from the foul line.
Turning defense into offense proved to be a big key for the Lady Lions as they scored 33 points off 22 Bucknell turnovers. That included 12 steals, led by Elliott, Murray, and Tamera Johnson with three apiece. Despite having just five less turnovers than the Bison, the Lady Lions mitigated the damage by allowing just eight points off their 17 miscues.
Penn State easily won the rebounding battle by a 44-32 margin. Elliott and Walker played a key role in that effort with six boards apiece. Just as important, the Lady Lions turned 17 offensive rebounds into 16 second-chance points. Merkle cleaned up on the offensive glass with nine offensive rebounds herself. That was just two less than Bucknell had as a team.
Bucknell piled up 12 3-pointers in a losing effort. Reese Zemitis hit four from long range and finished with a team-high 12 points. Anna Kunzwiler and Sophia Sabino finished with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The Lady Lions host Canisius Thursday at 6 p.m.
BUCKNELL (0-1): Coskun 3-10 1-2 7, King 3-9 0-0 9, Sofilkanich 1-6 2-2 4, Kunzwiler 4-9 0-0 11, O'Connor 0-1 0-0 0, Heiden 0-0 1-2 1, Houghton 3-4 0-0 6, Casey 0-0 0-0 0, Sabino 3-8 2-3 10, Weisman 4-6 0-0 8, Zemitis 4-8 0-0 12, Totals 25-61 6-9 68
PENN STATE (1-0): Merkle 8-18 5-9 21, Campbell 3-5 0-0 7, Elliott 3-8 2-4 9, Murray 9-20 2-2 28, Oden 0-4 0-0 0, Hall 4-5 5-6 13, Johnson 2-2 0-0 5, Rust 0-0 0-0 0, Jekot 0-0 0-0 0, Santana 0-1 0-0 0, Steele 0-1 0-0 0, Walker 1-2 5-5 7, Totals 30-66 19-26 90
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Bucknell 15 20 22 11 -- 68
Penn St. 33 18 16 23 -- 90
3-Point Goals--Bucknell 12-29 (Coskun 0-4, King 3-6, Sofilkanich 0-2, Kunzwiler 3-6, Sabino 2-4, Zemitis 4-7), Penn St. 11-25 (Campbell 1-1, Elliott 1-3, Murray 8-16, Oden 0-1, Johnson 1-1, Santana 0-1, Steele 0-1, Walker 0-1). Assists--Bucknell 18 (Sabino 5), Penn St. 20 (Campbell 6). Fouled Out--Bucknell Sofilkanich, Weisman. Rebounds--Bucknell 32 (Coskun 5, Weisman 5), Penn St. 44 (Merkle 13). Total Fouls--Bucknell 19, Penn St. 13. Technical Fouls--None. A--1,575.