CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Allison Curtin must love the pressure.
For the third consecutive game, all against ranked foes, Curtin got a double-double as Illinois beat Penn State 75-71 Sunday to
snap the Lions' eight-game winning streak.
|  | | Illinois' Cindy Dallas, left, and the rest of the Illini put some tough defense on Penn State, especially Jessica Brungo. |
The Fighting Illini (6-8, 1-1 Big Ten) have played three ranked
teams in eight days, beating then-No. 14 Auburn on Dec. 30 and
falling 100-59 to No. 4 Georgia on Thursday.
"Who we were at Georgia and who we were tonight were two
different teams," said Curtin, who finished with 23 points and 10
rebounds Sunday.
"We watched some film on Georgia, and everyone wrote some of
their thoughts down," Curtin said. "We kind of set the tone for
how we want to play the rest of the Big Ten schedule."
Penn State (11-4, 3-1; No. 9 ESPN/USA Today; No. 10 Associated Press) got 20 points from Maren Walseth and 14
each from Kelly Mazzante and Lisa Shepherd.
Illinois was quicker to loose balls all day, with 15 steals and
causing 23 turnovers.
A 13-2 run put Illinois ahead 26-10. Lisa Shepherd scored six
consecutive points to get the Lions back to 32-25 with 5:17 left
in the half, but Illinois stretched it back to 43-40 by halftime.
"I think it was decided in the first five minutes in a big
way," Penn State coach Rene Portland said. "Our halftime speech
was about selfishness."
In addition to the turnovers, Portland complained about her
team's poor shot selection. The Lions were 1-for-11 from 3-point
range in the first half and 5-for-21 for the game.
"That was nothing like what we practiced all week," she said.
Penn State kept it close in the second half, however, with
Ashley Luke's 3-pointer getting the Lions to 66-60 with 4:40
remaining. Curtin and Shavonna Hunter added layups for a 70-60 lead
with 1:40 left.
Illinois coach Theresa Grentz said she needs to see more
consistency from her young team, which starts three freshmen, a
sophomore and a junior. A season-opening victory against No. 18 Clemson gives the Illini three victories over Top 25 opponents, but plenty
of defeats to some mediocre competition too.
"Go figure. We're 6-8 and we've got three ranked teams,"
Grentz said. "They can be great or they can be absolutely
pitiful."
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ALSO SEE
Women's College Basketball Scoreboard
Penn State Clubhouse
Illinois Clubhouse
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