Jan. 30, 2013
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA., JAN. 30, 2013 - Penn State (8-12; 0-8 Big Ten) will seek its first conference win of the season Thursday when the Nittany Lions travel to Iowa (13-7; 2-5 Big Ten) for an 8:00 p.m. tip on ESPNU. The game marks the second in a four of five game stretch in which Penn State games will be carried to a national audience on and ESPN platform.
The Lions will be seeking their first road win of the season and their first at Iowa since the 2001 season. Penn State has been staying within striking distance in Big Ten games with good defense. The Lions have blocked a season high seven shots in each of their last two games and now rank fourth in the Big Ten blocking 4.1 shots per game. Penn State has held five of eight Big Ten opponent below their season scoring average, including strong efforts twice holding the nation's highest scoring team, Indiana (84.4 ppg), well below its season average, including to 72 on its own floor, and Ohio State (73.0 ppg) to 65.
D.J. Newbill (15.5 ppg) and Jermaine Marshall (15.1 ppg) continue to lead the Lions in scoring, both posting double-digits in each of the last four games, and account for 50 percent of the Lions scoring.
Iowa is coming off a tough 65-62 overtime loss at Purdue and has lost its last two games on the road after victories at Northwestern and vs. Wisconsin. Guard Roy Devyn Marble leads Iowa scoring 14.4 ppg and forward Aaron White adds 13.4 ppg and 6.1 rpg.
The Lions will get the weekend off before returning to the court on Tuesday to face Purdue in a 7:00 p.m. tip in the Jordan Center. It will be Dollar Dog Night at the BJC as well as the third snapback hat night for Penn State students.
Single game tickets for men's basketball are available by calling 1-800-NITTANY or by visiting GoPSUsports.com/tickets or Ticketmaster. Single-game tickets for Nittany Lion games are $24 for lower bowl seats between the baselines, $18 for the lower bowl behind the baskets and upper level between the baselines and $15 for upper level behind the basket seats for adults and seniors. Youth tickets (18 and under) are $10, while Penn State student tickets (University Park or branch campus) are $5.
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.
PENN STATE (8-12; 0-8 Big Ten) at IOWA (13-7; 2-5 Big Ten)
THURSDAY, JAN. 31, 2013 @ 8:00 P.M. (ET)
CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
IOWA CITY, IA
GAME INFO
TELEVISION: ESPNU: Dan Gutowsky & Adrian Branch
RADIO: Penn State Sports Network: Local (1450 AM); Steve Jones (pxp) & Dick Jerardi (analyst)
Sirius/XM: 91/191
COACHES:
PENN STATE: Patrick Chambers - 20-32 (2nd at PSU); 62-60 (4th Overall)
IOWA: Fran McCaffery - 42-44 (3rd at Iowa); 293-221 (17th Overall)
RPI: PSU:179; IOWA: 84
NEXT UP:
PSU will return to the Jordan Center after a weekend by to face Purdue on Tuesday. The Boilers posted a 60-42 victory in West Lafayette on Jan. 13 and own a 28-11 series lead having won the last two meetings and 8 of the last 9. The Lions are 9-10 vs. Purdue at home and posted a 65-45 victory in the Jordan Center last year for Coach Patrick Chambers' first Big Ten win.
THE GAME:
Penn State returns to the court after four days, hitting the road to face Iowa on Thursday looking for its first road win of the season. It begins a string of six of the Lions' last 10 Big Ten games on the road. The Hawkeyes own a 23-13 lead in the series and are 14-3 in Iowa City. The Lions won the last meeting 69-64 in the Jordan Center last February. Penn State's last win in Iowa City came with a 78-73 victory in 2001, a string of nine straight losses in Iowa City. The Lions have won two of the last three meetings. Penn State is seeking its first conference victory and its first road win of the season. The Lions have lost their last 14 road games, dating to a victory at Boston College in November of 2011, and last 12 vs. Big Ten opponents, dating to a victory at Minnesota on March 6, 2011.
NOTES TO KNOW:
• Penn State coach Patrick Chambers and Iowa coach Fran McCaffery were both born in Philadelphia and have strong ties to the city. McCaffrey played and coached at Penn and was later also head coach at Lehigh, about an hour north of the city.
• Penn State has held the leading scorers of the last two opponents well below their season averages holding IU's Cody Zeller (17.2 pgg) to a career low 2 and Big Ten leading scorer Deshaun Thomas (20.5 ppg) to a season low 11 on 4-of-13 shooting.
• Penn State has posted a season best seven blocks in each of the last two games and ranks fourth in Big Ten games blocking 4.1 per game. PSU's 70 blocks are 20 more than after 20 games last season.
• D.J. Newbill committed just one turnover in 39 minutes against one of the nation's top defenders in Aaron Craft, contributing to a PSU season low 4 turnovers vs. OSU, the Lions' fewest since committing three vs. Wisconsin in 2006.
• D.J. Newbill and Jermaine Marshall have both posted double-figure scoring in each of the Lions' last four games. Four different Lions have been the team's third scorer in those games: Borovnjak (9), Travis (9), Taylor (9) and Colella (6). The Lions have had no more than two players record double-figures in the same game in the Big Ten so far.
• Newbill (6) or Marshall (9) have led the Lions in scoring in 15 of the 17 games since Tim Frazier went down with injury.
• Penn State has started three different line-ups in the last three games and six different on the year. Brandon Taylor missed his first start in 15 games in the last outing.
• Penn State is averaging 65.4 ppg at home, eclipsing 70 five times, and 49.7 ppg on the road, with a high of 57, this season. The Lions are averaging 47 ppg in Big Ten road games with a high of 51 posted at Wisconsin in the Big Ten opener.
• Jermaine Marshall has led the Lions in scoring in the last three home games, posting 21.0 ppg (including a career high 29 vs. MSU), and four times in seven Big Ten games.
• Jermaine Marshall (29) and D.J. Newbill (27) both posted career high point totals and accounted for 56 of PSU's 72 points in a loss to MSU while combining to shoot 60%.
• Jermaine Marshall posted his first career double-double (29 & 10) vs. MSU. He has double-figure scoring in 14 of his last 16 games and leads the team with 34 threes and 30 steals.
• PSU has posted 14 games with double-digit offensive boards, including a season high 17 vs. Indiana on Jan. 7. PSU has won the rebounding battle in 10 of the last 14 games and leads the Big Ten collecting 74.8% of all defensive rebounds.
• Penn State has gotten to the line an average of 23 times in the last four games but is still trailing Big Ten foes 11.5 ppg to 17.5 ppg in scoring at the foul line and has been outscored at the foul line in every Big Ten game so far.
• D.J. Newbill leads Penn State with 132 free throw attempts and has gotten to the foul line at least once in 48 of 51 career games.
• Newbill (6th, 15.5 ppg) and Marshall (7th, 15.1 ppg) are one of two sets of teammates to rank in the Top 10 in scoring in the Big Ten, and the 2nd highest scoring backcourt (30.6 ppg), behind Michigan's Trey Burke (2nd, 17.9) and Tim Hardaway Jr. (5th, 15.9), 33.8 ppg.
• Newbill and Marshall account for 50% of the Lions' points and steals.
SCOUTING IOWA:
The Hawkeyes are coming off a tough 65-62 overtime loss at Purdue in which freshman guard Mike Gesell led four Iowa players scoring 12 or more points with 18 on 3-of-4 from three. Iowa is 13-7 overall and 2-5 in Big Ten play, having lost its last two games on the road after wins at Northwestern (70-50) and vs. Wisconsin (70-66). Iowa is 10-2 at home with close losses to Indiana (69-65) and Michigan State (62-59). Roy Devyn Marble leads Iowa posting 14.4 ppg and Aaron White adds 13.4 ppg and 6.1 rpg. Iowa is scoring 72.8 ppg to rank among the top scoring teams in the Big Ten, but is allowing 63.7 ppg to rank among the bottom three in the conference. They are one of the strongest rebounding teams pulling 40 per game and lead the league in assists with 16.0 per game.
EAST COAST COACHING CONNECTION:
Penn State head coach Patrick Chambers and Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery were both born in Philadelphia, Pa. and have deep coaching ties to the city. Chambers played at Philadelphia University and later coached at Episcopal Academy (HS) and Villanova. McCaffrey played at Penn and was later an assistant coach for the Quakers before becoming head coach at Lehigh, about an hour north of the city. Wisconsin's Bo Ryan and Chambers both hail from Delaware County Pennsylvania. Ryan was born and raised approximately 12 miles from Chambers and about 20 minutes from downtown Philadelphia in Chester, Pa. and coached high school basketball in Pennsylvania at Brookhaven and Sun Valley, both near Philadelphia. Northwestern's Bill Carmody also has strong east coast ties having been born in Spring Lake, N.J. and coached at Princeton and Providence (assistant) as does Michigan's John Beilein who was born in Burt, N.Y. and made several coaching stops around western New York and the east coast including at Canisius, Richmond, West Virginia, LeMoyne and Nazareth.
HOLDING THE MAN DOWN:
• Penn State has held the opposing teams leading scorer below their season average in each of the last five games.
• The defense has been particularly strong in the last two outings holding Indiana's Cody Zeller (17.2 ppg) to a career low two points and no field goals in four attempts and Big Ten Leading scorer Deshaun Thomas (20.5 ppg) to a season low 11 of 4-of-13 shooting.
WHAT A COMBO!:
• Junior Jermaine Marshall posted career highs of 29 points and 10 rebounds and sophomore D.J. Newbill had a career high 27 points and added six assists as Penn State's starting guards accounted for 56 of the Lions' 72 points in an 81-72 loss to No. 18 Michigan State (1/16).
• The tandem combined to shoot 18-30 (60%) from the floor and 17-of-23 (74%) at the foul line. Marshall hit three treys and tied a career high with 10 field goals while Newbill got to the foul line 15 times and made 11.
• They both exploded in the second half with Marshall collecting 22 of his points and Newbill 18 of his in the second 20 minutes, accounting for 40 of the Lions 47 points in the highest scoring PSU half in coach Patrick Chambers two seasons. They accounted for 18 straight points at one point and 30 of the final 32 for the Lions as PSU sliced a 16-point MSU lead to five with 2:06 to play.
• Their combined 56 points were the most by two Lions in a game since Geary Claxton (31) and Jamelle Cornley (25) combined for 56 in a 129-111 victory over VMI in 2006. It marked the second time this season they both scored 20 points in a game.
• Marshall and Newbill have combined to record 33 of the Lions 51 double-digit scoring games this season, with 18 coming from the other players on the roster. n Marshall and Newbill account for 50% of the Lions points and steals and 56% of the team's free throws and free throw attempts.
LAST TIME OUT: No. 14 OHIO STATE 65, PENN STATE 51, Jan. 26, 2013 • Bryce Jordan Center
Penn State held Big Ten leading scorer Deshaun Thomas to 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting, but couldn't generate enough of its own offense shooting 36% from the floor and 13-of-22 (59%) from the foul line to fall to the Buckeyes. The Lions had the game tied at 11 with 13:34 to play in the first half when they suffered through an 11-minute drought without a field goal and saw OSU take a 25-12 lead. Still the Lions were within 11, 29-18, at the half. OSU shot 43% for the game and 19-of-23 from the foul line led by Sam Thompson's 16 points. Penn State committed a season low four turnovers and saw D.J. Newbill record 15 points, six assists, two steals and just one turnover in 39 minutes vs. Aaron Craft. Jermaine Marshall led PSU with 16 points and Sasa Borovnjak added nine. PSU remained within striking distance most of the game, but couldn't generate a run as OSU went up 16 with 13:34 to play and held a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
For all the latest information, notes, pictures and related links on Penn State basketball follow Associate Athletic Communications Director Brian Siegrist on Twitter (@PSUSTRETCH) and check GoPSUsports.com. The Nittany Lions are also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstatebasketball.
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