Sunday, February 9
Evanston, Ill.
1 p.m. CT
Northwestern
8-14,1-10Big Ten
69
vs
63
Penn State
10-14,1-12Big Ten
1
2
3
4
F
Penn St.
19
10
12
22
63
Northwestern
12
18
11
28
69
Photo by: Mary Grace Grabill/Northwestern Athletics
‘Cats Grind Past Penn State, 69-63
2/9/2025 6:45:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Daley pours in 20 points to lead Northwestern to first Big Ten victory of season
EVANSTON, Ill. (February 9, 2025) – Melannie Daley led all scorers with 20 points, pacing a group of three Wildcats in double figures, as Northwestern (8-14, 1-10 B1G) willed its way to a 69-63 win over Penn State (10-14, 1-12 B1G) this afternoon inside Welsh-Ryan Arena.
How It Happened
Northwestern looked to establish an inside presence from the opening tip, with Taylor Williams finishing in the paint to knot the score up at 2-2 with only 42 seconds gone. Following a Caroline Lau putback that made it 6-6 near the midway point of the frame, Vitoria Santana connected on a three to ignite a 9-2 Penn State spurt, as the visitors opened up a 17-8 lead. Two Caileigh Walsh free throws closed the gap to five, 17-12, before Talayah Walker beat the buzzer to send Penn State into the second quarter with a 19-12 lead.
Daley asserted her presence early in the second frame, rattling off six straight points to cut the Lady Lions' lead to three, 23-20. A turnaround jumper from Grace Sullivan gave Northwestern its first lead of the day, 26-25, with 3:37 remaining before buckets on consecutive trips from Williams and Daley, respectively, stretched the gap to five, 30-25. Penn State responded heading into halftime, with Walker scoring again as time expired to trim the Wildcats' lead to 30-29.
Northwestern locked in on the defensive end coming out of the intermission, holding Penn State scoreless for the opening 4:25 of the third quarter as it pushed its advantage back out to five, 34-29, on a Kyla Jones fast break score. After seeing Penn State retake the lead, 38-36, Daley finished through contact on the way to an old-fashioned three-point play that put the 'Cats back on top, 39-38. Sullivan connected on another turnaround jumper in the closing minute to send the two teams to the fourth quarter in a 41-41 deadlock.
Walsh and Casey Harter provided Northwestern with an early spark in the final frame, each connecting on threes to stake the 'Cats to a 47-41 edge. Daley and Lau both capped off fast breaks with scores ahead of a Sullivan mid-range jumper that saw the lead balloon to 54-43 with 7:01 to play. With the margin sitting at 59-47 following another Sullivan make, Penn State took advantage of a Northwestern cold spell, charging back within four, 59-55, on a Walker layup with only 1:43 to go. A Jayla Oden layup made it a one-possession game, 66-63, in the closing seconds, but Northwestern went on to put the game away at the line en route to securing its first Big Ten win of the season.
Gallery: (2-9-2025) Women's Basketball vs. Penn State
Inside The Box Score
- Daley was outstanding, closing her day with 20 points (9-14 FGs, 2-3 FTs), three rebounds, four assists, and a season-high tying four steals.
- Daley, who reached the 20-point mark for the third time this season, has scored in double figures in 11 of Northwestern's last 13 games.
- Sullivan added 14 points on a 7-of-10 clip from the field, in addition to tying a career high with three steals of her own.
- Led by Daley and Sullivan, Northwestern owned a dominant 34-11 advantage in bench scoring.
- Harter rounded out a trio of 'Cats to score in double figures with 10 points (2-9 FGs, 1-6 3FGs, 5-6 FTs).
- Paced by a game-high eight assists from Lau, Northwestern assisted on 20 of its 26 made field goals.
- Williams was active on both ends of the floor, finishing with seven points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks.
- Williams has 12 games with 10-plus rebounds this season.
- On the defensive end, the Wildcats forced Penn State into 24 turnovers, the most this season by a Northwestern opponent.
- The 'Cats finished with a 21-6 advantage in points off turnovers.
- Walker led the Lady Lions with 14 points (6-11 FGs, 2-3 FTs).
Up Next
Northwestern begins a two-game road swing on Wednesday, February 12 against Purdue. Tip-off from inside Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
How It Happened
Northwestern looked to establish an inside presence from the opening tip, with Taylor Williams finishing in the paint to knot the score up at 2-2 with only 42 seconds gone. Following a Caroline Lau putback that made it 6-6 near the midway point of the frame, Vitoria Santana connected on a three to ignite a 9-2 Penn State spurt, as the visitors opened up a 17-8 lead. Two Caileigh Walsh free throws closed the gap to five, 17-12, before Talayah Walker beat the buzzer to send Penn State into the second quarter with a 19-12 lead.
Daley asserted her presence early in the second frame, rattling off six straight points to cut the Lady Lions' lead to three, 23-20. A turnaround jumper from Grace Sullivan gave Northwestern its first lead of the day, 26-25, with 3:37 remaining before buckets on consecutive trips from Williams and Daley, respectively, stretched the gap to five, 30-25. Penn State responded heading into halftime, with Walker scoring again as time expired to trim the Wildcats' lead to 30-29.
Northwestern locked in on the defensive end coming out of the intermission, holding Penn State scoreless for the opening 4:25 of the third quarter as it pushed its advantage back out to five, 34-29, on a Kyla Jones fast break score. After seeing Penn State retake the lead, 38-36, Daley finished through contact on the way to an old-fashioned three-point play that put the 'Cats back on top, 39-38. Sullivan connected on another turnaround jumper in the closing minute to send the two teams to the fourth quarter in a 41-41 deadlock.
Walsh and Casey Harter provided Northwestern with an early spark in the final frame, each connecting on threes to stake the 'Cats to a 47-41 edge. Daley and Lau both capped off fast breaks with scores ahead of a Sullivan mid-range jumper that saw the lead balloon to 54-43 with 7:01 to play. With the margin sitting at 59-47 following another Sullivan make, Penn State took advantage of a Northwestern cold spell, charging back within four, 59-55, on a Walker layup with only 1:43 to go. A Jayla Oden layup made it a one-possession game, 66-63, in the closing seconds, but Northwestern went on to put the game away at the line en route to securing its first Big Ten win of the season.
Inside The Box Score
- Daley was outstanding, closing her day with 20 points (9-14 FGs, 2-3 FTs), three rebounds, four assists, and a season-high tying four steals.
- Daley, who reached the 20-point mark for the third time this season, has scored in double figures in 11 of Northwestern's last 13 games.
- Sullivan added 14 points on a 7-of-10 clip from the field, in addition to tying a career high with three steals of her own.
- Led by Daley and Sullivan, Northwestern owned a dominant 34-11 advantage in bench scoring.
- Harter rounded out a trio of 'Cats to score in double figures with 10 points (2-9 FGs, 1-6 3FGs, 5-6 FTs).
- Paced by a game-high eight assists from Lau, Northwestern assisted on 20 of its 26 made field goals.
- Williams was active on both ends of the floor, finishing with seven points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks.
- Williams has 12 games with 10-plus rebounds this season.
- On the defensive end, the Wildcats forced Penn State into 24 turnovers, the most this season by a Northwestern opponent.
- The 'Cats finished with a 21-6 advantage in points off turnovers.
- Walker led the Lady Lions with 14 points (6-11 FGs, 2-3 FTs).
Up Next
Northwestern begins a two-game road swing on Wednesday, February 12 against Purdue. Tip-off from inside Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
Team Stats
PSU
NU
FG%
.431
.419
3FG%
.154
.125
FT%
.550
.682
RB
46
31
TO
24
11
STL
4
13
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
9
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
F
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