PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Plymouth State University women's basketball team dropped a 63-48 non-conference game to Wheaton College at Foley Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Panthers trailed by 17 points midway through the second quarter but buckled down from that point forward. PSU outscored the Lyons, 38-36, over the final 26 minutes of play, continuing a trend of strong late-game performances for the Panthers in the early season.
 
Freshman Sophie George (Meredith, N.H.) scored 20 points to lead the Panthers, while senior Alessia Salzillo (Saugus, Mass.) contributed 10 points of her own. Junior Lauren Keller (Fort Morgan, Colo.) brought down a team-high eight rebounds in the losing effort.
 
Plymouth State falls to 2-2 on the season, while Wheaton improves to 4-1.
 
The Basics:

• Plymouth State 48, Wheaton 63
  • Plymouth State (2-2)
  • Wheaton (4-1)

Top Performers:

• Sophie George (20 pts, 8-15 fg, 2-6 3pt, 5 reb)
• Alessia Salzillo (10 pts, 1-2 3pt, 5 reb)

How it Happened:

• The Panthers were held to one field goal as Wheaton opened with an 11-2 lead with 3:06 on the clock in the first quarter.
• PSU traded baskets to close out the first quarter, maintaining a nine-point deficit to trail 16-7 after one.
• Wheaton extended the lead to 26-9 at the 6:18 mark of the second quarter.
• George knocked down a pair of free throws to cut the Lyons' lead back to nine, 27-18, with less than a minute before halftime.
• Wheaton scored the final four points of the half to take a 31-18 advantage into the locker room.
• With three seconds left in the third quarter the Panthers took a quick timeout and drew up a play for Salzillo, who knocked down a buzzer-beating three to win the quarter, 13-10, and set up a 41-31 deficit heading into the fourth quarter.
• PSU kept playing tough through the fourth, cutting the lead to eight, 50-42, with under two minutes to play.
• The Panthers were unable to get closer, though, as Wheaton knocked down some clutch free throws to hold on for the win.

By the Numbers:

• The Panthers went 16-of-55 (29.1%) from the floor and 4-of-17 (23.5%) from three.
• PSU outrebounded the Lyons, 39-36, including 11-6 on the offensive glass.
• Wheaton took 20 free throws to PSU's nine.
• Wheaton scored 21 fastbreak points.
• George notched her second 20-point game of her young career and is averaging 16.5 points per game this season.
• This was the first meeting between the two teams since November of 2014. Wheaton leads the all-time series by a 4-1 margin.

  
Up Next:

• Plymouth State heads to Central Maine Community College for an exhibition game on Tuesday (Nov. 22) at 5:00 p.m.

 
 
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