March 09, 2014
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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - D.J. Newbillhad 15 of his 24 points in the second half for the Nittany Lions (15-16, 6-12), but Penn State fell to Minnesota 81-63 Sunday evening.
The 81-63 loss set up a rematch between these teams in the first round of the Big Ten tournament.
The Nittany Lions tied for 10th in the conference standings with Northwestern and drew the higher seed because they beat the Wildcats earlier this week.
DeAndre Mathieu led the Golden Gophers (19-12, 8-10) with 16 points and six assists, Mo Walker scored 16 points on a career-best 8-for-10 free-throw shooting performance, and Minnesota locked up seventh place in coach Richard Pitino's first season.
Minnesota and Penn State will play on Thursday in Indianapolis, with the winner advancing to the quarterfinals to face Wisconsin.
The Gophers led by as much as 51-26 in the second half, until Newbill helped bring the Lions back to within nine points at 55-46. But the Gophers pulled away again by hitting their free throws down the stretch. They had their fast break in full gear most of the game, thanks to 21 defensive rebounds and 10 steals that propelled it.
Tim Frazieradded 14 points, going 10 for 12 from the foul line, for the Lions.