Rashunda Jones, Sophie Swanson Post Career Nights in Purdue's Win Over Penn State
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In a must-win situation on Thursday night in State College, Purdue sophomores Rashunda Jones and Sophie Swanson delivered in a big way. Both players scored career-high totals, leading the Boilermakers to a critical 92-85 victory over Penn State, keeping their hopes of a Big Ten Tournament berth alive.
Jones did everything for the Boilermakers on Thursday night, scoring 32 points, dishing out eight assists and grabbing six rebounds in the win. Swanson was a walking human torch, making 10-of-13 shots from the floor, including five-of-six from 3-point range. She was also a menace defensively, recording three steals.
Freshman Lana McCarthy also had a solid outing for Purdue, finishing the night with 11 points and eight rebounds.
Road win highlights?
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Purdue and Penn State found themselves in a tough battle in the opening quarter, with the Boilermakers owning an 18-17 lead through the first 10 minutes. By halftime, the Boilers expanded their lead to 11 points, taking a 41-30 lead into the locker room.
Things really picked up in the second half on the offensive end, but Purdue's efficiency was too much to overcome. The Nittany Lions outscored the Boilermakers 55-51 in the final 20 minutes, but it wasn't nearly enough to overcome the 11-point halftime deficit.
Purdue improved to 3-14 in Big Ten play with Thursday's win over Penn state and is currently 15th in the conference standings, the cutoff to make the conference tournament, scheduled for March 5-9 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
In order to secure a spot in the event, Purdue either needs to win its final game of the season — a matchup with Indiana at Mackey Arena on Sunday — or hope for Penn State to defeat Rutgers on Sunday.
With either result, the Boilers would secure a spot in Indianapolis.
However, if Purdue loses to Indiana and Rutgers defeats Penn State, the Boilermakers will fall to 16th and be one of the three teams on the outside looking in.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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