Rutgers visits Penn State after Murray’s 25-point showing

By Canadian Press on January 17, 2026.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-9, 0-6 Big Ten) at Penn State Lady Lions (7-11, 0-7 Big Ten)

University Park, Pennsylvania; Sunday, 1 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Penn State hosts Rutgers after Moriah Murray scored 25 points in Penn State’s 108-84 loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The Lady Lions have gone 4-5 at home. Penn State is 0-1 in games decided by 3 points or fewer.

The Scarlet Knights are 0-6 in Big Ten play. Rutgers gives up 63.1 points to opponents while being outscored by 4.5 points per game.

Penn State’s average of 6.9 made 3-pointers per game this season is just 0.5 more made shots on average than the 6.4 per game Rutgers gives up. Rutgers’ 35.7% shooting percentage from the field this season is 10.8 percentage points lower than Penn State has allowed to its opponents (46.5%).

The matchup Sunday is the first meeting this season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Gracie Merkle is scoring 19.2 points per game with 7.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists for the Lady Lions. Kiyomi McMiller is averaging 18.2 points and 3.7 assists over the past 10 games.

Nene Ndiaye is averaging 14.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 steals for the Scarlet Knights. Imani Lester is averaging 11.1 points and 5.2 rebounds over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Lady Lions: 1-9, averaging 68.2 points, 33.3 rebounds, 15.5 assists, 8.5 steals and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting 42.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 88.0 points per game.

Scarlet Knights: 3-7, averaging 56.0 points, 33.6 rebounds, 11.6 assists, 9.4 steals and 3.9 blocks per game while shooting 35.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.2 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press

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