Game Preview
- Youngstown State will celebrate the careers of seniors Megan Callahan, Lindsey Mack and Lilly Ritz as it plays its final home game of the regular season on Sunday. Tipoff against Green Bay will be at 1 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN and ESPN+.
- The Penguins are one of two teams to have beaten the Phoenix in Horizon League play, and they represent Green Bay's only loss since Dec. 1. Green Bay's other conference loss came at Milwaukee, which beat YSU 75-54 on Friday evening in Youngstown.
- In Friday's setback, YSU scored 38 points in the first 15 minutes but just 16 points over the final 25. The Penguins led 38-28 at the 5:01 mark of the second quarter, but Milwaukee rallied to tie the score at 39 at halftime and outscored YSU 16-4 in the third period. Callahan scored a team-high 18 points, and she went over 1,000 points in her career.
- The Penguins have their sights set on clinching another game in Beeghly Center in the quarterfinals of the upcoming Barbasol Horizon League Women's Basketball Championship. YSU has already secured a bye into the quarterfinals of the tournament, and one Penguins win or one loss by Northern Kentucky will guarantee a top-four seed and a home game in the tournament on March 2.
- Youngstown State is 18-8 overall and 12-5 in Horizon League play with three games left in the regular season. YSU can still finish as high as second, and it can finish no lower than fifth.
- YSU has won 17 of its last 22 games dating back to its win over St. Francis Brooklyn on Nov. 26. The Penguins need two more wins to clinch their sixth 20-win season in the last 11 years. YSU is 12-3 on its home floor.
- Ritz averaged 28.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in YSU's two victories last week to win her third Horizon League Player of the Week award of the season. She ranks among the top three players in the conference in scoring, rebounding, field-goal percentage, double-doubles, steals and blocks, and she is among the top 20 players in the country in double-doubles, rebounding and field-goal percentage.
- On the perimeter, three Penguins guards – Malia Magestro, Megan Callahan and Shy - are averaging at least 8.1 points and rank among the top 11 in the Horizon League in 3s per game. All three are averaging career highs in points and assists per game. Dena Jarrells ranks third in the Horizon League with 3.81 assists per game.
- Despite surrendering 75 points on Friday, YSU ranks among the top three teams in the Horizon League in scoring defense, field-goal percentage defense and rebounding margin. Offensively, YSU leads the league in assists per game and ranks in the top three in field-goal percentage and 3-pointers per game.
- This is YSU's 10th season under Head Coach John Barnes, who was named the Horizon League Coach of the Year in 2021-22. Barnes is second in career victories at YSU with 169, and his .571 winning percentage is the second-best mark in school history. His 300th game at Youngstown State will be YSU's first contest in the 2023 Barbasol Horizon League Women's Basketball Championship.
- YSU shared the Horizon League regular-season title with IUPUI in 2021-22 as both teams finished with an 18-4 conference mark. While the core of YSU's roster is familiar, the target on the Penguins' back is not. For the first time in program history, Youngstown State was picked as the preseason favorite to win the Horizon League by the conference's coaches. Last season, YSU was picked to finish seventh in the preseason poll.
- This is the 50th anniversary season of Beeghly Center, which opened in 1972-73. YSU is 58-18 at home since the start of the 2018-19 season for a .763 winning percentage, and it is 33-8 in its last 41 games on Rosselli Court.
Tickets, Promotions & Fan Information
- Advance tickets for Sunday's game are available on YSUsports.com. The Beeghly Center Ticket Office and gates will open at noon on Sunday.
- Promotions
- Senior Day
- Thom Duma Fine Jewelers half-court shot for a $5,000 shopping spree (YSU students only)
- YSU Team Picture Giveaway, courtesy of McDonald's and 21 WFMJÂ
- Veterans Appreciation Day presented by NECA IBEW
Youngstown State vs. Green Bay
A Win Would...
- Improve YSU's overall record to 19-8 this season and its Horizon League record to 13-5.
- Be YSU's second straight victory over Green Bay.
- Allow the Penguins to sweep the regular season series ith Phoenix for the second time in program history.
- Allow YSU to win 13 Horizon League games for just the third time ever (2018-19 and 2021-22).
- Improve YSU's home record to 13-3
- Be Head Coach John Barnes' 326th career victory and his 170th at YSU.
Scouting the Phoenix
- Green Bay is 22-4 overall and 15-2 in Horizon League play, which has the Phoenix tied for first place in the standings with Cleveland State (CSU played Saturday). The Phoenix have won eight straight games, and their lone loss since Dec. 1 was against YSU on Jan. 20.
- Green Bay ranks among the top seven teams in the country in scoring defense, field-goal percentage defense and turnovers per game. The Phoenix average 67.7 points offensively while surrendering 52.6 points.
- Sydney Levy leads Green Bay offensively with 11.6 points per game and 52 3-pointers. Baily Butler has 104 assists, which is the highest total in the conference.
Series History
Overall: Green Bay leads 44-6
Barnes: 5-15 • Home: 3-19 • Away: 3-22 • Neutral: 0-2
Current Win Streak: 1 by Youngstown State
- Green Bay has won 44 of the 50 all-time meetings with Youngstown State in a series dating back to Jan. 21, 1993, when both teams were members of the Mid-Continent Conference. All 50 contests have been in league play or a conference tournament.
- Of YSU's six wins, five of them have come in Head Coach John Barnes' nine-plus seasons. The Penguins are 5-15 against the Phoenix under Barnes, who coached for a season at Green Bay alongside Kevin Borseth in 2012-13. The pair also coached together at Michigan in 2011-12, and both are former head coaches at Michigan Tech.
- While Green Bay has a sizable hold on the all-time series, YSU has closed the gap under Barnes, particularly in the last six meetings. The Penguins are 3-4 in the last seven encounters, and the losses include a two-point margin in the semifinals of the 2019 Horizon League Championship and two double-overtime setbacks.
Recently vs. Green Bay
- This Season (at Green Bay – Jan. 22, 2023): Youngstown State led for more than 32 minutes and scored five of the final six points to beat Green Bay 63-60 on Jan. 22 at the Kress Center. The Penguins beat the Phoenix on the road for the first time since 2014, and they snapped Green Bay's 11-game winning streak in the process. Green Bay's final lead came at 59-58 with 2:35 left when Jasmine Kondrakiewicz made a 3-pointer, but Dena Jarrells hit a 3 on YSU's next possession to put the Penguins up 61-59. The final three points of the game came at the free-throw line as Callie Genke split two free throws for Green Bay with 1:54 on the clock, and Malia Magestro and Paige Shy made attempts in the final five seconds. The Phoenix had two turnovers in the final six seconds.
- Last Season at YSU (Dec. 4, 2021): Youngstown State made 15 3-pointers in the first three quarters and withstood a second-half push by Green Bay in a 67-58 at Beeghly Center. YSU made three 3-pointers in the first period as it took a 13-12 lead heading into the second, and the Penguins buried seven 3-pointers in the second to go up 37-26 at halftime. Green Bay got as close as four in the second half, but YSU ended up leading for 32:23. Megan Callahan scored a game-high 20 points, and Lindsey Linard had five points in a starting role as Lilly Ritz missed the contest.
Feb. 19 in YSU History
- YSU is 9-8 all-time in games played on Feb. 19, and the Penguins last played on the date in 2021 when they lost 76-73 to Cleveland State. YSU led the Vikings by as many as 18 points, but CSU went 5-for-6 from 3-point range and scored 18 points over the final four minutes of the game. Nneka Obiazor had 29 points in the contest.
- Also recently, YSU won 60-59 at Northern Kentucky in 2018, and Heidi Schlegel scored 38 points in a 79-73 win at Milwaukee in 2015.
- YSU's last win in Beeghly Center on the date was a 75-62 victory over Valpo in 1998.
Recapping Milwaukee
Game Summary
Youngstown State scored 38 points in the first 15 minutes but just 16 points over the final 25 in a 75-54 loss to Milwaukee on Friday evening. After the Penguins took a 38-28 lead on the Panthers at the 5:01 mark of the second period, they scored just one point over the next 12:23 of game action. Milwaukee went on a 23-1 during that stretch, and YSU trailed by double digits the rest of the way. Megan Callahan scored her 1,000th career point in an 18-point night for the Penguins, and Lilly Ritz collected her 15th double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Milwaukee went 14-for-24 on 3-point attempts, and Angie Cera was 6-for-7 on her own.
Notes
- Milwaukee's 14 3-pointers were its most in a game since 2017. The previous record for 3-pointers by a visiting team in Beeghly Center was 12. Milwaukee came into the game averaging five 3-pointers per game and shooting 27.1% from beyond the arc.
- Youngstown State took a 13-2 lead when Megan Callahan hit a 3-pointer in transition at the 5:32 mark of the opening quarter. Her triple followed an old-fashioned three-point play 16 seconds earlier, and it put her over 1,000 points in her career.
- YSU led by 11 three different times in the first period, and its largest lead was 25-13 when Paige Shy hit a jumper with 2:15 on the clock. Cera hit back-to-back 3s to close the period for Milwaukee, which scored 10 straight points to get within 25-23 with 8:48 left in the second quarter.
- After Milwaukee's surge brought it to within 25-23, YSU answered with a 13-5 run to build its lead back to double digits at 38-28 on a Ritz basket with 5:01 left. YSU did not make a field goal from the 5:01 mark of the second quarter until Callahan hit a 3 with 1:49 left in the third quarter. YSU made 10 of its first 11 shots but just 11 of its last 42 attempts.
- There were only 18 fouls called in the game, and teams combined for 12 free-throw attempts. YSU had its fewest free-throw attempts in a game this season.
- Milwaukee shot 51.8% from the field, which was the highest by an opponent this season. Milwaukee alwo made four more 3s than any other opponent, and it shot 58.3% from beyond the arc.
- YSU committed 17 turnovers, and it was minus-8 in turnover margin. The Panthers converted those turnovers into 14 points, and they had a 14-4 edge in points off turnovers.
Up Next
- Youngstown State will have a quick turnaround as it travels to Indianapolis on Tuesday to face IUPUI. Tipoff against the Jaguars is set for 7 p.m. in The Jungle.
