Feb. 28, 2009
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA., Feb. 28, 2009 - In front of 15,035 fans at the Bryce Jordan Center and on an emotional "Senior Night" the Nittany Lion basketball team kept the faithful on the edge of their seats trailing by one with 2:16 to play before downing the Indiana Hoosiers, 61-58, on a jump hook and an emphatic dunk from senior Jamelle Cornley (Columbus, Ohio).
The victory in front of Penn State's largest crowd in eight years improved the Nittany Lions to 20-9 on the year and 9-7 in the Big Ten, marking their first 20-win regular season and most Big Ten wins since 1995-96 and first ever season sweep of Indiana. Ed DeChellis became the fifth coach in Penn State history to record a 20-win season as Penn State reached the mark for just the 10th time ever.
"I just felt like this was going to be tough game for two days and was really concerned about it and tried to stress that to the team," DeChellis said. "I give Indiana a lot of credit. They came in and played with a lot of heart and a lot of grit. Our kids found a way to win and we've been doing that all year and I think that's the most important trait. Sometimes it just doesn't go your way but at the end of the day, you find a way to win the game."
Indiana (6-22; 1-15 Big Ten) took the lead four times in the second half and clung to a 58-57 lead with 2:16 to play following a free throw from Verdell Jones III. Penn State went into the paint to Cornley who backed down for a jump hook that rattled home with 1:55 to play giving the Lions a 59-58 lead. Talor Battle (Albany, N.Y.) got a big steal from Devon Dumes and the Lions called timeout to set up the offense. The Lions ran the shot clock down until Battle drove the lane, spun, drew defenders and dumped the ball to Cornley who threw down and emphatic one-handed dunk for a 61-58 lead with 56 seconds to play.
Battle fouled on the the Hoosiers' next possession and Jones III missed the front end of a one-and-one, but the rebound went off a Penn State player out of bounds. Matt Roth attempted a three pointer near the top of the arch and missed, but the rebound went off a Penn State defender again with eight seconds to play. Indiana got one final look, but Cornley closed out on Roth and his deep prayer at the buzzer hit the back of the rim.
"Sometimes you've got your gut feeling and I felt like this was going to be a close, close game. I didn't want it this close, but going into the thing, I just told the staff that this was going to be a tight close game and we'll have to make some plays to win it," DeChellis said. "I ended up being right. I don't like being right like that."
Penn State improved to 14-3 at the home on the season, the Lions' most home wins in program history. Battle finished the game with 16 points and eight rebounds to lead the Lions, while Cornley and fellow senior Stanley Pringle (Virginia Beach, Va.) each finished the game with 10 points. The Lions improved to 14-1 when the three all score in double-figures.
Battle's 58-game starting streak came to an end as senior Will Leiner (Coplay, Pa.) made his first career start. Leiner played seven solid minutes tallying two points and an acrobatic lay-up and a career-high two assists and a rebound.
Penn State struggled again at the foul line going 7-of-17 (41%) and shot just 6-of-20 from the arc. After a tough first half shooting, the Lions hit 59 percent from the floor in the second and finished at 50 percent for the game, their best shooting night since hitting 56 percent in a win at #9 Michigan State. Indiana shot 52 percent in the second half and 45 percent for the game. Dumes and Jones III led Indiana with 16 points each and Jones III added eight assists.
Penn State took a 29-28 lead to halftime after a Pringle lay-up for his 10th point of the half. Sophomore Andrew Jones (Philadelphia, Pa.) opened the second half with a jumper to give the Lions a 31-28 lead. On the ensuing possession, Indiana's Kyle Taber answered back with a lay-up. After a Battle three and a Morrissey free throw, Jones scored the Lions' next two field goals to give Penn State a 39-36 lead. The 6-9 sophomore finished the game with eight points, going 4-fo-4 from the field to extend his hot shooting to 21-of-27 (77%) in his last eight games.
Jones III answered back for Indiana with a three-pointer of his own to tie the score. Cornley hit a jumper with 13:46 to go, followed by a Battle fast-break lay-up off a Morrissey steal. After an Indiana field goal and a missed opportunity on offense by the Lions, the Hoosiers had an opportunity to tie or take the lead. However, a Battle steal led to a Cornley lay-up to give the lions a 45-41 advantage.
Dumes kept Indiana close, when he drained a three at the 10:45 mark to shrink the Lions' lead to one. On the Hoosiers' following possession, Tom Pritchard was fouled and sank both free throws at the 10-minute mark to give the Hoosiers a 46-45 advantage.
With 9:12 remaining, the Lions showed signs of taking over the game when Battle nailed a three to gain back the lead for Penn State. On Indiana's possession, Jones blocked Taber's field goal attempt, Battle grabbed the rebound and dumped the ball off to Babb, who sank a three to give Penn State a solid 51-46 lead and bring the crowd to its feet.
Indiana came back though with a 6-0 run, thanks to two consecutive field goals by Jones III and two made free throws by Dumes. After a Jackson lay-up for Penn State, Dumes answered back with a three to regain the lead, 55-53, for the Hoosiers. A Nick Williams gave IU its largest lead of the game, 57-53, with 5:26 to play.
Free throws by Jackson and Battle got Penn State back within two and the Lions finished the game on a 10-6 run though to secure the victory.
The Nittany Lions shot just 4-10 from the free throw line and 3-of-11 from the arc in the first half as they struggled to generate offense and led by no more than five. Up 12-7, the Lions were held scoreless for 6:40 until Jackson ended the drought with a two-point jumper at the 8:22 mark cutting a Hoosier lead to 16-14.
Penn State retook the lead on a Battle lay-up and built a 22-18 edge following a three and two free throws from Pringle. A pair of Roth threes tied the game at 24.
After a back and forth exchange of baskets, Indiana jumped out to a 28-27 lead with eight seconds to go in the first half after Jones III sank two free throws. On the inbound, Pringle drove the ball down the court and sank the lay-up with three seconds to go to give the Lions a key 29-28 halftime edge. With the win, Penn State improved to 18-1 on the season when leading at halftime.
Penn State will return the Bryce Jordan Center on Thursday when they take on No. 20 Illinois in a "Thursday Night Showcase" game on ESPN. The crucial game for the Big Ten standings and Penn State NCAA Tournament hopes is scheduled for a 9:00 p.m. tip. Nittany Lion basketball tickets can be purchased by calling the Penn State ticket office during regular business hours at 814-865-5555, visiting GoPSUsports.com anytime, or calling Tickmaster toll free at 800-745-3000.