No. 12 Penn State women beat No. 17 Purdue 74-63
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Maggie Lucas scored 28 points and No. 12 Penn State maintained its Big Ten lead by defeating No. 17 Purdue 74-63 Thursday night.
It was the fifth straight win for the Lady Lions (21-5, 11-3), who have two home games remaining — against No. 9 Ohio State, which trails Penn State by a half-game, and Minnesota — before the Big Ten tournament begins March 1 in Indianapolis.
Lucas scored 20 of her points in the second half, when Penn State pulled away from a 35-33 halftime lead.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Mia Nickson had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Lady Lions. Alex Bentley and Zhaque Gray added 10 points apiece.
Guyton had 12 points to lead Purdue (19-7, 9-4), which has lost four of its last five following an 11-game winning streak. Chantel Poston had a game-high 12 rebounds for the Boilermakers.
It was the only regular-season meeting between the schools.