No. 13 Ohio State Squeaks Out 83-79 Win Over Nittany Lions

No. 13 Ohio State Squeaks Out 83-79 Win Over Nittany Lions
Sophomore forward Seth Lundy leads all scorers with 26 points

Credit Source: Penn State University Athletics

BOX SCORE: No. 13 OHIO STATE 83, PENN STATE 79

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Penn State men’s basketball game against Ohio State on Wednesday evening came down to the final buzzer as the Buckeyes edged the Nittany Lions 83-79. The Nittany Lions (5-7,2-6) were led by sophomore Seth Lundy who finished with a game-high 26 points.

Lundy’s trey with 2:07 remaining gave Penn State a 79-77 lead. The Buckeyes (13-4,7-4) managed to tie the game at 79 after a pair of free throws.

“I thought our guys really came in here and competed tonight,” said interim head coach Jim Ferry. “Ohio State is a fantastic team, especially at home. I thought they had a little bit more energy than us to start the game, they were more aggressive, but then once we settled in, we locked in and defended significantly better…It’s hard to keep this team down, EJ Liddell was really, really difficult to guard down the stretch. We really executed and got some good looks. I thought they executed a little better and they made one more play than we did. They went 20-21 from the foul line and we went 18-24. These two teams really battled and I’m really proud of our guys.”

In the final minute, Ohio State made a pair of free throws to take a two-point lead. A Nittany Lion triple was just off the mark and the Buckeyes were able to pull down the defensive rebound.

On the following Ohio State possession, fantastic defense by senior Jamari Wheeler forced the Buckeyes to turn the ball over on a shot-clock violation. With another chance to tie the game, a runner in the lane was off the mark for the Nittany Lions as the Buckeyes corralled the rebound. Another pair of Buckeye free throws produced the 83-79 final score.

John Harrar finished with the third double-double of his career as he turned in 15 points and 10 rebounds on the night. Izaiah Brockington finished with 18 points and Myreon Jones also finished in double figures with 10 points.

The Nittany Lions defense forced the Buckeyes into a season-high 17 turnovers on Wednesday evening. Out of the halftime break, PSU went on a 10-3 run to take its first lead of the game at 49-46 following a Jones’ three-pointer.

After ties at 49, 51 and 53, the score tipped in Penn State’s favor, going up by six, 61-55 midway through the second period. The Nittany Lions made four of their next five field goals to go up by eight, 70-62. Ohio State put together an 10-2 run to take a 74-73 lead with 3:12 left in the game.

Three-pointers by junior guard Myles Dread and Lundy put Penn State up by two, 79-77, but the Buckeyes knotted the game at 79 with two free throws with 1:37 remaining.

Ohio State grabbed an 11-2 lead over the Nittany Lions into the first media timeout off three field goals and a 4-4 mark from the charity stripe.

Lundy took over for the Nittany Lions, scoring 17 first-half points on 5-8 shooting.

Penn State struggled to find its mark to begin the game, going 1-9 from the field in the first four minutes. The Nittany Lions finished the half going 11-17 to cut into the Buckeyes lead. After a Lundy triple with 3:24 to play in the half, the Buckeyes went on a 7-0 run to push the lead back to 11.

In the half’s final two minutes, Penn State outscored Ohio State 9-2 to bring the score to 43-39 headed into the locker room.

Wheeler scored the game’s final four points of the half with two layups off back-to-back steals and in the final 20 seconds.

Ohio State’s EJ Liddell finished with 22 points, 14 coming in the first half, and led the Buckyes with seven rebounds.

Penn State plays host to No. 14 Wisconsin at 3 p.m. Saturday in the Bryce Jordan Center. The game, set for broadcast on Big Ten Network, was originally scheduled for Jan. 3.

Keep up to date with the latest information from the Nittany Lions at @PennStateMBB on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook at @pennstatebasketball.

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