With Stellar Shooting, Maggie Lucas Leads Penn State Into Sweet 16

Narberth native Maggie Lucas did what she does best Tuesday night—sink free throws and three-pointers—and it got her Penn State basketball team into the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16.

The No. 4-seeded Nittany Lions beat No. 5 LSU, 90-80, in Baton Rouge, LA (televised on ESPN2), with Lucas scoring 30 points in a game that saw no other player break 20.

In 38 minutes, the sophomore out of Germantown Academy made five of seven three-point attempts (seven of 12 from field overall) and converted all 11 trips to the free-throw line. Lucas added six rebounds, two assists and three steals.

After the game, Lucas took to Twitter to thank her supporters—"Feels sooo great", she wrote—and to post a photograph of her jubilant teammates on the plane home to State College.

The Sweet 16 breakthrough, Penn State's first since 2004, comes one year after a disappointing two-point loss to DePaul in the second round. In that game, the freshman Lucas did well at the free-throw line but struggled from the field.

Penn State moves on to play No. 1 seed Connecticut, a perennial juggernaut of women's basketball, at 4:34 p.m. Sunday in Providence, RI. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2 and online at ESPN3, as were the victories over LSU and first-round opponent UTEP.