The University of Cincinnati women’s basketball team improved to 2-0 on Saturday afternoon, November 7, defeating Penn State 76-53 at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati, according to Penn State Athletics’ recap on GoPSUSports.com. Sportradar’s final listing independently confirmed the result — Cincinnati 76, Penn State 53, final, at Fifth Third Arena.
Cincinnati captured an early lead and never let up, Penn State Athletics reported. The Bearcats opened the game with eight straight points, led 22-11 after the first quarter, stretched the margin to 40-20 at halftime and carried a 62-34 lead into the fourth quarter, according to the Penn State recap — a wire-to-wire performance in the Bearcats’ second game of the season.
Penn State (0-2) was led by junior guard Devyn Quigley, who scored 19 points, while graduate guard Enjulina Gonzalez added nine points and graduate forward Cristen Carter led the Lady Lions with 12 rebounds, Penn State Athletics reported. Penn State actually outrebounded Cincinnati 37-30 and held a 32-28 edge in points in the paint, according to the recap, but the Lady Lions could not overcome Cincinnati’s early surge and the growing margin that followed.
The win follows Cincinnati’s season opener on November 4, a 66-58 victory over East Texas A&M, according to GoBearcats.com. Two games into the season, the Bearcats are unbeaten, with a pair of home results that include Saturday’s 23-point win over a Big Ten opponent.
The quarter-by-quarter lines in Penn State Athletics’ recap show a lead that grew in stages rather than in a single run: eight straight points to open the game, an 11-point lead after one quarter, 20 points at halftime and 28 after three quarters. That steady build, against a Penn State team that won the rebounding battle 37-30 according to the same recap, points to Cincinnati’s shot-making and defense — not second chances — as the difference on Saturday.
For Hamilton County fans, Saturday’s result is an early marker for the Bearcats, who are listed at 2-0 overall and 0-0 in Big 12 play in Penn State Athletics’ recap. What happens next is the continuation of Cincinnati’s opening homestand rhythm, with the Bearcats looking to protect Fifth Third Arena again after outscoring Penn State in each of the game’s first three quarters, per the Penn State report.
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