Lady Lion Passes a Milestone
By: Sara Eckert
Updated: February 8, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. -- In her first season as a Lady Lion, Maggie Lucas piled up the awards
and points, and this season, the shooting guard has picked up right
where she left off hitting a huge milestone in stride.
After breaking the Big Ten single-season three-pointers record on her way to being named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Sixth Player of the Year last season, Lucas became just the third Lady Lion to surpass 1,000 career points as a sophomore. She did that this past Sunday at Minnesota.
"I was excited. it's a cool milestone to hit, but I credit a lot to my teammates. They put me in positions where I can score consistently, and it's just fun," says Lucas
"Man, it's cool to see her do it as a sophomore. She's had a terrific season. You look at the season she had as a freshman, and you go, 'How can she top that?' but she's become a better player, and so I've been really thrilled to see her development as a basketball player, and with her work ethic, I know she's only going to continue to get better," head coach Coquese Washington says.
Even after her successful freshman season, Lucas still worked hard in the offseason to expand her game. This year, she leads the team in scoring with 19.6 points per game and has scored in double figures in all but one game, including 13 games with 20 or more points.
"I worked a lot on my ball handling. I worked with my coach Fred Chmiel on different ways to score. This year I'm looking for more than just the three," explains Lucas. "Last year I think I was a majority of the time looking to get threes, but this year, I'm definitely getting off the dribble a lot more, and that's the stuff I worked on in the offseason."
"She does a much better job this year of just taking what the defense gives her and she's going to play off that, and she's been remarkably consistent in doing that all season," adds Washington.
After breaking the Big Ten single-season three-pointers record on her way to being named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Sixth Player of the Year last season, Lucas became just the third Lady Lion to surpass 1,000 career points as a sophomore. She did that this past Sunday at Minnesota.
"I was excited. it's a cool milestone to hit, but I credit a lot to my teammates. They put me in positions where I can score consistently, and it's just fun," says Lucas
"Man, it's cool to see her do it as a sophomore. She's had a terrific season. You look at the season she had as a freshman, and you go, 'How can she top that?' but she's become a better player, and so I've been really thrilled to see her development as a basketball player, and with her work ethic, I know she's only going to continue to get better," head coach Coquese Washington says.
Even after her successful freshman season, Lucas still worked hard in the offseason to expand her game. This year, she leads the team in scoring with 19.6 points per game and has scored in double figures in all but one game, including 13 games with 20 or more points.
"I worked a lot on my ball handling. I worked with my coach Fred Chmiel on different ways to score. This year I'm looking for more than just the three," explains Lucas. "Last year I think I was a majority of the time looking to get threes, but this year, I'm definitely getting off the dribble a lot more, and that's the stuff I worked on in the offseason."
"She does a much better job this year of just taking what the defense gives her and she's going to play off that, and she's been remarkably consistent in doing that all season," adds Washington.
