Wildcats Rally Falls Short, Northwestern Loses to Penn State, 81-71

After losing to the Lady Lions, can the 'Cats make the Big Ten Tournament?

Jan 7, 2013; University Park, PA, USA; General view of the Penn State Nittany Lions logo inside the Bryce Jordan Center prior to the game between the Indiana Hoosiers and the Penn State Nittany Lions. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

The Northwestern Wildcats women's basketball team continued to see their odds of even qualifying for this year's Big Ten Tournament erode further on Sunday, when they squandered a valiant late-game rally attempt on the road against the Penn State Lady Lions to fall by double digits, 81-71.

Righeimer lapped her prior career high (seven points) with an 18-point outpouring while shooting 5-of-6 from the field (3-of-4 from distance) and 5-of-6 shooting from the charity stripe, plus a rebound.

Penn State built out a strong 36-22 edge over Northwestern in the opening half, abetted by a litany of Wildcat turnovers. 6-foot-4 senior Wildcats forward Grace Sullivan kept the Wildcats semi-alive with seven points (five off foul shots). A pair of Lady Lions guards, sophomore Kiyomi McMiller and junior Moriah Murray, paced Penn State with 13 points and nine points, respectively.

The Lady Lions built up a seemingly insurmountable 20-point lead during the third frame, but Northwestern stayed frisky. Still, the Wildcats didn't seriously threaten to overtake Penn State until the waning minutes of the fourth frame.

Tayla Thomas, Xamiya Walton and Sullivan helped lead the surprise late rally, getting the Wildcats within just a possession, 74-71, at the 43-second mark.

Grace 💥

Sullivan with another three-point play to cut the Penn State lead to three! pic.twitter.com/df1q8kXxm7

— Northwestern Women’s Basketball (@nuwbball) February 15, 2026

The Wildcats tried to foul Penn State frequently to get the ball back, but ultimately McMiller proved too tough a foe, and the Wildcats fell.

McMiller finished with a 32-point, 12-rebound night to pace Penn State. For Northwestern, senior point guard Caroline Lau chipped in 17 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the floor and 2-of-2 shooting from the free throw line, while Sullivan logged 16 points on 4-of-13 shooting from the field and 8-of-10 shooting from the charity stripe.

Now sporting a dismal 2-12 Big Ten record, Northwestern currently boasts the No. 16 seed in the conference, just a half game ahead of Penn State (2-13 in the Big Ten) and two games ahead of Rutgers (1-13).

The Wildcats still have four Big Ten matchups left this season: Wednesday against Michigan State, Sunday against Illinois, Feb. 25 against Maryland, and March 1 against Purdue. The top 15 teams by conference record qualify for the Big Ten Tournament. Northwestern trails the current No. 15 team, Indiana (3-12 in Big Ten play), by a half game. Purdue (4-10) and Wisconsin (5-10) are still catchable, in theory.

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