Feb. 27, 2008
2007-08 Stats | Game Notes (PDF)
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Nittany Lion basketball team (12-14; 4-10 Big Ten) will be seeking its third consecutive Big Ten home win on Wednesday when it hosts Iowa (12-16; 5-10 Big Ten) for a 7:00 p.m. (ET) tip on the Big Ten Network.
The game can be heard live on the Penn State Sports Network (WMAJ 1450 AM in State College) with Steve Jones and Dick Jerardi calling the action and will be streamed to www.GoPSUsports.com.
Penn State will be playing just its second home game since its 85-76 win over No. 8 Michigan State on Feb. 2. The Nittany Lions have played four of their last five games on the road, but will finish the regular season with three of their last four at home. Penn State has won its last two home games, having beaten Illinois on Feb. 16. The Nittany Lions will be seeking a third consecutive Big Ten home win for the first time under Ed DeChellis.
With a win over the Hawkeyes, Penn State would move from ninth to seventh place in the Big Ten standings.
At halftime, the THON '08 Linedance will take place on the heels of this past weekend's record-breaking $6.6 million, 46-hour event for children with cancer. Committee Members and Dancers receive free admission to the game by wearing their Committee or Dancer shirts and entering at Gate A.
Also at halftime, several of the Penn State football award winners from the 2007 season will be recognized.
Penn State faculty and staff can purchase tickets for $5.00 for the Iowa game with a valid Faculty/Staff ID (Sponsored by the Penn State Federal Credit Union).
The Lions are coming off a 75-68 setback at Minnesota on Sunday. Junior Jamelle Cornley scored 20 points to become Penn State's 28th 1,000 career point scorer. Cornley is one of just 16 Nittany Lions all-time with at least 1,000 points and 500 rebounds. Freshman David Jackson posted season-highs with 19 points and eight rebounds vs. the Golden Gophers and junior Danny Morrissey tallied 14 points off the bench, connecting on 4 of 5 three pointers.
Iowa is coming off a 66-52 loss at No. 17 Michigan State on Saturday. Junior forward Cyrus Tate was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday. He scored a career-high 26 points (10-13 FG) and grabbed nine rebounds vs. the Spartans. In the Hawkeyes' 53-51 win over Northwestern on Feb. 19, Tate had 18 points and 11 rebounds. He scored 15 points in the second half to help spark Iowa's comeback from a 14-point deficit. The Hawkeyes are No. 2 in the Big Ten and No. 5 in the nation in scoring defense at 57.8 ppg and fifth in the conference in FG Pct. defense at 40.3.
Tickets for Nittany Lion Basketball can be purchased by visiting the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office, calling 814-865-5555 or by clicking on the ticket link on www.GoPSUsports.com, the official website of Penn State Athletics. Penn State offers discounts for groups of 15 or more. Any groups interested in purchasing single-game tickets should contact the ticket office at 814-863-6757.
GAME NOTES
Penn State (12-14; 4-10 Big Ten) vs. Iowa (12-16, 5-10 Big Ten)
Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2008 @ 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Bryce Jordan Center, University Park, Pa.
TV: Big Ten Network
Series At A Glance: The Hawkeyes lead the series 20-9 and won 64-49 in Iowa City earlier this year. Penn State is 6-6 at home against Iowa, winning 74-72 last year, and Ed DeChellis is 1-6 vs. the Hawkeyes. Iowa has won eight of the last 10 meetings.
Coaches: Penn State: Ed DeChellis - 54-90 (5th at PSU); 159-183 (12th Overall); Iowa: Todd Lickliter 12-16 (1st at Iowa); 143-77 (7th overall)
Television: BTN: Matt Devlin (p-by-p) & Tim McCormick (analyst)
Radio: Penn State Sports Network: Steve Jones (p-by-p), Dick Jerardi (analyst). Flagship: WMAJ (1450 AM)
WEB: Audio and Gametracker links at GoPSUsports.com.
Up Next: Penn State will continue a two-game homestand when it takes on Michigan (9-19, 5-11) Saturday at 8:00 p.m. for Senior Day. The Wolverines lead the series, 21-8, and have won the last 11 meetings, including a 68-63 decision in Ann Arbor earlier this year. Seniors Geary Claxton, Brandon Hassell and Mike Walker will be honored prior to the contest.
Happy to be Home: Penn State will be playing just its second home game since its 85-76 win over No. 8 Michigan State on Feb. 2. The Nittany Lions have played four of their last five games on the road, but will finish the regular season with three of their last four at home. Penn State has won its last two home games, having beaten Illinois on Feb. 16. The Nittany Lions will be seeking a third consecutive Big Ten home win for the first time under Ed DeChellis.
Lions Seek Best Big Ten Finish Since 2001: Despite the loss of leading scorer Geary Claxton four games into the Big Ten season, Penn State has an opportunity to earn its best Big Ten finish since 2001. Penn State stands ninth in the conference with a 4-10 mark, just behind Iowa (5-10) and Michigan (5-11). Penn State went 7-9 in the Big Ten and tied for sixth in 2001. Penn State's previous high finish under Ed DeChellis in the Big Ten came with a 6-10 mark and eighth place finish in 2006.
Lions Improved Since Iowa City Meeting: Penn State has made progress since the Jan. 26 meeting with Hawkeyes. Still dealing with the loss of Geary Claxton, the Big Ten's No. 2 scorer and rebounder at the time of his injury, the Lions scored a season-low 17 first half points in the 64-49 loss at Iowa. Since then, Penn State has posted wins over No. 8/7 Michigan State and Illinois and been competitive in every game, incliuding narrow losses at Michigan and Minnesota, games the Lions led by seven or more points before the hosts rallied.
Injury: Geary Claxton, torn ACL in left knee (1/15), out for season, surgery on Wed., Jan. 30.
Jamelle Cornley, bone bruise in left knee (preseason), requires continued icing and electrical stimulation therapy on knee.
Cornley Hits1,000-point/500 rebound total: Junior Jamelle Cornley scored 20 points at Minnesota to become just the 16th Nittany Lion to post 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career. He grabbed his 500th career rebound at Michigan State (Feb. 20) and has 1,019 career points, becoming PSU's 28th 1,000-point scorer. He is tied with Mike Edelman (1979-82) for 24th place. Tony Ward (1,020), James Barnes (1,025) and Steve Kuhn (1,057) are next.
Battle Making Case For All-Big Ten Freshman Team/Sixth Among Freshman Scorers: With nine double-digit scoring outings and three career highs so far in Big Ten play, freshman point-guard Talor Battle is making a case for inclusion on the All-Big Ten Freshman Team among a strong group of first-year conference players. Battle's 11.5 ppg in Big Ten games is second on the team and ranks sixth among freshman (19th overall) and his 1.43 steals rank second among freshmen. Included in his performances are a career-high 20 points on a career best 80 percent (4-5) from three and 58.3 percent (7-12) from the floor in a head-to-head match-up with Eric Gordon at Indiana and scoring Penn State's last nine points and team-high 14 points, six boards and four assists, with two game-winning FT with :07.1 to play, in a win over Illinois (2/16).
Small Guards Coming Up Big: Freshman Talor Battle (5-11), 6-1 junior Stanley Pringle and 6-2 senior Mike Walker have been BIG for Penn State since Geary Claxton went down with an injury 10 games ago. One of the three has led the Lions in scoring in nine of the last 10 games with Battle doing it four times, Pringle three and Walker twice each. The three have posted more double-figure scoring games since the injury than any other players, with Battle notching seven and Pringle five and Walker four, and are averaging 27.5 ppg (48% of scoring) over the stretch. The trio were the only Lions in double-figures at Michigan and combined for 46 points and and eight threes in the 85-76 upset of No. 7 Michigan State (2/2). Battle posted six-straight double-figure games, including a career high 20 points at Indiana. He is leading the team averaging 11.2 ppg over the span. Pringle has three career high outings and six double-digit outings in the Big Ten including a career high 19 in the win over Michigan State and is averaging 9.6 ppg since the injury. The pair have started the last eight games together in the backcourt giving the Nittany Lions their most effective offensive and defensive combination. Walker has been a spark off the bench posting three straight double-digit games in early February.
"It was Battle and Pringle that were the keys. Those two guys tore our guards apart." - Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo
Guard Play Key To Victory: With 12 wins and 14 losses, Penn State's guard play (Talor Battle, Stanley Pringle, Mike Walker & Danny Morrissey) looks decidedly different when the Nittany Lions win. In the 12 wins, Penn State's guards have shot 41 percent (124-303) from the floor and 37.5 percent (71-189) from three. While making virtually the same number of shots in losses, the guards have shot a much lower percentage hitting 35 percent (140-396) from the floor and 31 percent (77-244) from three. The biggest discrepancy in guard play comes at the foul line where the guards have made 32 more free throws and reached the foul line 34 more times in wins than losses. The guards are shooting 75 percent (58-77) from the line in wins and just 60 percent (27-45) in losses. In particular, Stanley Pringle is 19-of-22 in wins and 5-of-10 in losses. The guards are averaging 6.7 turnovers per game in losses and just 4.7 in wins with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.1 in losses and 1.7 in wins.
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