Penn State DuBois sophomore Shannon Shaw hits one of her nine three pointers during the game against Penn State New Kensington at the PAW Center
DuBOIS, Pa. — Penn State DuBois’ men’s and women’s basketball teams played their final home games in the month of January on Saturday when they hosted Penn State New Kensington at the PAW Center.
In the women’s game, the Lady Lions took control in the first half and never trailed at any point. Leading by 11 points at the end of the first quarter and increasing that lead to 17 points at the end of the second, Penn State DuBois got the win over Penn State New Kensington 66-56. Shannon Shaw found her shooting range early and often from beyond the three point arch, hitting nine threes as part of a career afternoon. She finished with 30 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal in one of the best shooting performances seen so far in the PAW Center. Sarah Huston and Frances Milliron also finished the game in double digits, with 14 points and 10 points respectively.
Earlier in the week, Penn State DuBois made the trip down to Penn State Fayette in another PSUAC matchup. The Lady Lions started out well, leading by six points at the end of the first quarter. But a slow shooting second quarter that saw the Lady Lions shoot 17% from the field proved to be too much to overcome, with Penn State Fayette getting the win 58-49. Milliron was the lone player for Penn State DuBois to score in double digits, netting 12 points. Tara Leamer contributed eight points and 13 rebounds as well.
On the men’s side, Penn State DuBois will be looking to get back on the winning track this week after falling in their last three games. On Saturday, the Nittany Lions hosted Penn State New Kensington, a team that beat them by 23 points earlier in the season. Even with a slow shooting performance in the first half, Penn State DuBois’ defense held their own. The Nittany Lions forced five first half turnovers and their efforts to crash the boards only allowed New Kensington one offensive rebound in the first half. This led to Penn State DuBois only finding themselves down six points at the break. However, the second half saw New Kensington shooting numbers improve drastically, shooting 50% from the field and 62% from beyond the arc. This combined with continued shooting struggles for Penn State DuBois allow New Kensington to pull away and get a 79-64 win at the PAW Center. Christopher Frontera came off the bench to play 21 minutes and score 13 points to lead Penn State DuBois offensively. Jaiquil Johnson also scored in double figures with 11 points and Guy Anthony pulled in 11 rebounds in the contest.
Penn State DuBois junior forward Will Helton drives past the reach of his defender during the contest with Penn State New Kensington at the PAW Center
On Wednesday, making the trip to visit Penn State Fayette, Penn State DuBois trailed by four after the first half, a first half that saw them only make 37% of their shots from the field. After taking the lead down to two at the start of the second half, Fayette pulled away and that would be the closest the lead would get in the second half. Penn State Fayette rode hot shooting on their way to a 76-66 victory over Penn State DuBois. Johnson led all scorers in the game, netting 17 points for Penn State DuBois. Will Helton and Ashton Fortson also scored in double figures for the Nittany Lions, with 11 and 10 points.
Penn State DuBois will see both the men’s and women’s teams on the road for the rest of the month of January. They will travel to Penn State Shenango on Tuesday, with the women’s game scheduled for 6 p.m. and the men’s game to follow at 8 p.m. This will mark the second time this season both the Nittany Lions and Lady Lions will match up against Shenango. Back in November at the PAW Center, the Lady Lions fell to Shenango 65-46, while the Nittany Lions came away with the victory 75-65. Both teams will close out the month on Jan. 31 when they travel to Penn State Greater Allegheny, in the first meeting between these two teams this season.
For complete athletic schedules, visit the Penn State DuBois athletic website at psuduboisathletics.com.
