Jan. 19, 2013
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA.; JAN. 19, 2013 - In a game that came down to the final minutes with both teams vying for their first Big Ten win, Nebraska (9-9, 1-6 Big Ten) out-shot the Lions at the free throw line to deal Penn State (8-10, 0-6 Big Ten) a 68-64 loss in the Bryce Jordan Center.
The Huskers went a perfect 16-of-16 at the foul line and got a career high 29 points from freshman Shavon Shields on a nearly perfect 10-of-11 from the floor and 8-of-8 at the foul stripe. Meanwhile, the Lions made just one of their final six foul shots, failing to capitalize on a late Nebraska flagrant foul, and shot 15-of-24 (62.5%) at the foul stripe for the day.
"We are on a marathon," Penn State coach Patrick Chambers said. "We just need to come back Monday, prepare, get better and work on our fundamentals and habits. There's progress. I don't know if you guys see it, but I see progress with certain players. They can't feel sorry for themselves because no one else feels sorry for us. We just need to keep going out and working."
The Nittany Lions were led by junior Jermaine Marshall (Etters, Pa.) who had a team-best 18 points, all in the second half, while sophomore D.J. Newbill (Philadelphia, Pa.) had 11. Newbill had a team-high six assists and also led the Lions with seven boards. Freshman Brandon Taylor (Tabernacle, N.J.) had nine points and six boards and senior Nick Colella (New Castle, Pa.) six points and a career high six rebounds.
Penn State shot 39 percent (22-of-57) for the day and saw 14 turnovers turned into 16 Husker points. The Nittany Lions out-rebounded Nebraska, 36-30 and had 14 offensive rebounds for a 17-0 advantage on second chance points but couldn't overcome the free throw disparity and Nebraska's 47 percent shooting for the day.
"They're doing the best that they can," Chambers said. "They really are. They come in and they lift, have great attitudes and want to get better. For their sake, I want to see them succeed. I want to see them have success on the floor. And that's only a matter of time."
The Nittany Lions wasted no time getting on the board with seven straight points to start the game. Senior Sasa Borovnjak (Belgrade, Serbia) opened with a layup, before a three-pointer by Taylor and a bucket from Newbill. Nebraska started 0-of-9 from the floor, but came alive with a 10-0 run for a three-point lead, 10-7, with 11:58 on the clock.
A jumper from Taylor moved Penn State within one, 10-9, but back-to-back baskets by the Huskers had Nebraska leading 14-9. Newbill scored on a layup and rebounded a three-point attempt by the Huskers to give the Lions another chance to score. Husker David Rivers fouled Colella on a three-point shot and Colella went 3-for-3 at the line to knot the score at 14-14 at the 8;26 mark.
Nebraska's Ray Gallegos pushed the Huskers back on top with a three and sank a second trey two minutes later for a six-point lead, 20-14. Despite a basket from Taylor, Nebraska's lead grew to double-digits, 27-17, by the 3:28 mark, but a jumper from Borovnjak and a basket by Taylor had the Lions back within six, 27-21.
Two Nebraska baskets sandwiched a Borovnjak layup to keep the Huskers in front as the clock approached 1:00. After a missed shot by both teams, Dylan Talley fouled Newbill who went 2-for-2 at the line with 39 seconds remaining in the half. After a layup by Shavon Shields, sophomore Kevin Montminy (Centre Hall, Pa.) sank a last second three-pointer to move Penn State within five, 33-28, as the teams went to half time.
After halftime, Penn State fell behind by 10 after an 8-3 Husker run to start the half. Marshall sank a layup and joined Colella in hitting back-to-back threes sparking a 12-0 Penn State run that pushed the Lions into the lead for the first time since the start of the game, 43-41. Shields cut off the run with a jumper to tie it up at 43-43 with 11:27 on the clock.
Shields, fouled by Graham, moved Nebraska back into the lead, 44-43, before free throws from Ubel had the Huskers up by three, 46-43. Two straight baskets, one each from Travis and Borovnjak, gave Penn State the lead again, 47-46. The lead was short-lived as a layup by Ubel had Nebraska ahead by a slim 48-47.
Travis gave Penn State the lead ahead with a jumper at the 9:01 mark. Less than a minute later, Jordan Tyrance fouled Marshall who hit three straight free throws to increased Penn State's advantage to four, 52-48.
Nebraska responded with seven straight points from Shields that began an 11-0 run that saw the Huskers take a 59-52 lead after two consecutive layups from Talley and Gallegos. A Travis jumper halted the Husker run and moved Penn State within five, 59-54.
Nebraska's lead grew to seven, 61-54, before two Penn State free throws and a Marshall layup had the Lions only trailing by three, 61-58. A Gallegos trifecta increased the gap to six, 64-58, but two Marshall foul shots kept Penn State close, 64-60. Borovnjak fouled Shields who went 2-for-2 at the line to put Nebraska back up by six, 66-60, but Marshall sank a three to bring Penn State within three, 66-63, with 32 seconds to play.
After a Penn State timeout, Newbill got a steal and drove to the basket where Nebraska's Ubel was assessed a flagrant foul allowing both Newbill and Travis to shoot two free throws each and the Lions retain possession. Penn State went 1-for-4 at the line, Newbill hitting one, to only narrow the game to two, 66-64, with 24 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, Shields tallied his fifth foul sending Marshall to the foul line. Marshall missed both. Nebraska rebounded and closed out the game with two more good free throws from Ubel for the 68-64 victory.
Penn State is back on the road with a visit to No. 2 Indiana on Wednesday, Jan. 23. Action is set for 7 p.m. on the Big Ten Network. The Nittany Linos return home on Saturday, Jan. 26 to host Ohio State at noon on ESPN2.
For all the latest information, notes, pictures and related links on Penn State basketball follow Associate Athletic Communications Director Brian Siegrist (@PSUSTRETCH) and the official Penn State men's basketball handle (@PennStateMBB) on Twitter and check GoPSUsports.com. The Nittany Lions are also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstatebasketball.
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GAME NOTES
• The series between Penn State and Nebraska is now tied at 3-3.Penn State leads the series at home 2-1 and head coach Patrick Chambers is now 1-2 against the Huskers.
• The Nittany Lions recorded 14 offensive boards to mark the 13th time this season Penn State has recorded double-digit offensive rebounds.
• Penn State out-rebounded the Huskers 36-27. This marks the 12th time the Nittany Lions have out-rebounded an opponent this season.
• The Nittany Lions posted a season low in fouls with only 16. Their previous low was 18, mostly recently against Purdue on Jan. 13, 2013.
• Junior Jermaine Marshall led the Nittany Lions with 18 points. He has 35 career double-digit scoring games, including 14 during the 2012-13 season. Marshall has led PSU in scoring eight times on the year and now has 609 career points.
• Sophomore D.J. Newbill was second on the team with 11 points to mark the 27th double-digit scoring game of his career and the 15th this season.
• Newbill also led the team in assists with six and boards with seven.
• Nebraska freshman Shavon Shields posted a career high 29 points on 10-of-11 from the floor and 8-of-8 at the line. His previous career high was 18 set in his previous outing vs. Purdue.