PHILADELPHIA – The first overtime game of the season was an exciting one for the University of Pennsylvania women's basketball squad, battling past Bucknell on Tuesday night in The Palestra, 68-62, to win its third straight.
 
Quaker Notemeal
*For the third time this season, second straight, Penn had four players score in double figures.
 
*Junior Jordan Obi led the team with 16 points, while adding a career-high five assists and four rebounds.
 
*Junior Floor Toonders continued to work both ends of the court, earning her second straight and second career double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. She went 3-for-6 from beyond the arc, the most of her career. Her 11 boards were her third straight game in double figures, fourth of the season, as she averages 8.7 per game. Additionally, she added a career-high four blocks and two steals.
 
*Senior captain Kayla Padilla also scored 15 points with eight rebounds, three assists, and a steal in 42 minutes of work. She leads the Ivy League in minutes per game with 38.0.
 
*Freshman Simone Sawyer, fresh off her first Ivy League Rookie of the Week honor, registered her fifth straight double-figure performance with 10 points, going 4-for-9 from the floor. She is shooting .470 from the floor and .415 from beyond the arc, both the top marks by a rookie in the Ivy League.
 
*Senior captain Mandy McGurk almost joined the double-figure party, knocking in eight points, including four critical free throws in the closing minute of overtime to seal the win (4-for-4).
 
*Defensively, Penn held the Bison to 36-percent shooting. The Quakers currently rank second in the league in opponent field-goal percentage with .366, only behind Brown that maintains a .353.
 
*The lead changed three times in the game along with five ties, as Penn held an advantage for 27:28. The Bison led for just 7:57.
 
How It Happened
The Bison jumped out to a 9-4 lead in the first half of opening quarter, forcing Penn to take a timeout before the media break. It proved to be the right move, as Obi connected on her first three of the game to draw the game closer. McGurk followed with a floater in the paint to draw the score even at 9-9 and the defense held Bucknell scoreless the rest of the way through the quarter.
 

1Q 5:10 | Bucknell 9, Penn 7

Well, the timeout was useful. Jordan Obi drills the three out of the break and she has the last five points for the Quakers!#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/GeQRnlFpwC

— Penn WBB (@PennWBB) December 7, 2022

 
The Bison responded with back-to-back layups to open the second, but that was the last stretch they'd lead until overtime. Penn answered with a Padilla three, a Sawyer free throw, and Toonder's first of three from beyond the arc to push the Quakers ahead, 16-13.
 

2Q 6:10 | Penn 16, Bucknell 13

Out in front! Big three from our center on the right wing! Toonders doesn't even hesitate and put the Quakers ahead by three.#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/L2fkXxjkLQ

— Penn WBB (@PennWBB) December 7, 2022

 
A late 7-0 run by Penn pushed the Quakers to an eight-point advantage with 1:37 left in the half, ultimately forcing a Bison timeout. Bucknell scored once before the horn, and Penn carried a 27-21 lead into the locker room. Obi and Padilla led six Quaker scorers in the two quarters with a combined 13 points.
 
Toonders help Penn jump on the scoreboard in the first nine seconds of the restart, drilling her second three of the game. However, the Bison closed the gap to two with seven straight points to force Penn into a timeout.
 
Again, proving useful, the Quakers hit a hot streak with 10 straight points that was capped off by another three from Toonders to give Penn its first double-digit lead of the game, 40-28 and a Bison timeout. At that point, Toonders solidified her second straight double-double.
 

3Q 5:50 | Penn 40, Bucknell 28

Toonders doing it all! She knocks in her THIRD three of the game to put the Quakers out 12... She already has a double-double (11pt, 10reb), her second straight and second of her career!#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/LJWqmGy8J8

— Penn WBB (@PennWBB) December 7, 2022

 
The score boosted to a 15-point advantage by the 4:26 mark of the third following a three by Sawyer, but Bucknell didn't go away. By the end of the frame, the Bison cut the deficit to six, and tied it up at 49 less than two minutes into the fourth.
 
In the final frame, the two squads battled neck-and-neck. Penn built up a seven-point lead with 2:09 left, however Bucknell used the last two minutes to chip away before tying it up at the buzzer on a leaning prayer at the top of the key to send the game to overtime.
 
A free throw to open the extra period by the Bison gave them their first lead since early in the second quarter, but it was short lived. Padilla answered with a driving layup and Obi followed with a three from the left wing to push Penn ahead by four.

3Q 5:50 | Penn 40, Bucknell 28

Toonders doing it all! She knocks in her THIRD three of the game to put the Quakers out 12... She already has a double-double (11pt, 10reb), her second straight and second of her career!#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/LJWqmGy8J8

— Penn WBB (@PennWBB) December 7, 2022

 
Bucknell scored one field goal in the extra five minutes with just 21 seconds left to get within two, but McGurk put the final touches on the game with a perfect 4-for-4 at the free-throw line to seal up the victory.  
 
Up Next
The homestand continues Thursday night, hosting St. Francis Brooklyn in The Palestra for a 7 p.m., tip. The Quakers defeated the Terriers last season in New York, 63-46.