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Feb. 13, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Nittany Lions welcome No. 19 Maryland to the Bryce Jordan Center for an 8:30 p.m. Valentine's Day matchup and the second meeting with the Terps in 10 days. Penn State (15-10, 3-9 B1G) was edged, 64-58, in the first round of the season series Feb. 4 in College Park.
The Nittany Lions, winners of three of their last six games, are in the midst of three-consecutive contests vs. ranked opponents, after taking on 23rd-ranked Ohio State Wednesday night and before hosting No. 5 Wisconsin next week.
PROMO PLANS
- Four dollars from every ticket vs. Maryland will benefit Uplifting Athletes, a national nonprofit organization aligning college football with rare diseases and raising them as a national priority through outreach, research, education and advocacy. The Penn State chapter of Uplifting Athletes raises money and awareness for kidney cancer and the Kidney Cancer Association.
- There will be a pregame skills clinic for kids in sixth grade and younger, as well as an autograph session on the concourse. [MORE INFO]
- Subway Full Court Four Pack Day: Fans can purchase four tickets, four drinks, and four subs for just $40
QUICK HITS
SCORING DEFENSE | In nine of 12 Big Ten games, Penn State has held its opponent below their season scoring average, including each of the last seven by an average of 11.7 points. The Nittany Lions limited the Huskers Feb. 7 to 43 points, 20.7 points below their season average of 63.7 points per game on the year.
MARYLAND | The Terps are 20-5 overall and in a three-way tie for second with an 8-4 record in Big Ten play, after defeating Indiana, 68-66, Wednesday night at the Xfinity Center. Penn State and Maryland have met 18 times, dating back to 1938, with this standing as the second meeting as conference foes.
ON VALENTINE's DAY | The Nittany Lions are 17-14 all-time when playing on Feb. 14 and 3-3 since entering the Big Ten. The last three Valentine's Day games have been decided by a total of nine points: 2013 vs. Iowa (L, 74-72); 2009 vs. Minnesota (W, 68-63), 2007 vs. Ohio State (L, 64-62).
ALL CLASS | D.J. Newbill was named one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, an accolade presented annually to the senior student-athlete with high accomplishments in all four areas of classroom, community, character and competition.
HEY DJ, THAT'S MY DJ | Senior guard D.J. Newbill, the top scorer among Power 5 conference players and ninth in Division I, has paced Penn State throughout season with 20.7 ppg. The No. 4 scorer all-time at PSU, he became just second player in program history to reach 500 points in three-consecutive seasons with his performance vs. Nebraska.
UP NEXT | Penn State continues its stretch of three Top 25 foes in an eight-day span by welcoming No. 5 Wisconsin Wednesday. The Badgers defeated the Lions, 89-72, on New Year's Eve in Madison.
THE MATCHUP
SCOUTING MARYLAND
- The Terps are 20-5 on the season with an 8-4 record, tied for second, in their first season of Big Ten action. They are coming off a 68-66 win over Indiana Wednesday night in the Xfinity Center.
- Maryland is ranked No. 19 in both the AP and USA Today polls and has been in the Top 25 for each of the last 11 weeks.
- The Terps are 2-4 on the road in Big Ten play, falling at Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State and Iowa with wins vs. Michigan State and Purdue. The average margin of defeat in the four road losses has been -16.5. Their six wins have been separated by +7.1.
- The last seven games have alternated between wins and losses.
- The Terps have three players averaging in double figures, led by Melo Trimble's 15.5 ppg. Penn State limited Trimble to just four points Feb. 4 in College Park, holding him scoreless from both the field (0-5) and from 3-point range (0-2).
- Dez Wells (14.2 ppg) and Jake Layman (13.6 ppg) also average more than 10.0 ppg, while Layman leads the team in rebounds with 6.7 rpg (7.3 in B1G play).
- Layman has led Maryland in rebounds 13 times and is fourth in the Big Ten in rebounds with 6.7 boards per game.
- With its win vs. Indiana Wednesday, Maryland reached the 20-win mark for the first time before February 15 since the 2001-02 season, when the Terps captured the national championship.
SERIES HISTORY
- This is the second meeting between Penn State and Maryland as conference foes. The Terps won 64-58, Feb. 4 in College Park.
- The Terps lead the all-time series with a 10-8 record and has captured each of the last two meetings.
- The teams first met in 1939 and then once a season from 1960-68 with sporadic meetings thereafter.
LAST TIME VS. THE TERRAPINS
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (Feb. 4, 2015) - Despite double figure scoring performances from D.J. Newbill and Geno Thorpe, Penn State men's basketball came up short in a 64-58 loss on the road at No. 17 Maryland. With Maryland leading 57-52, PSU battled to within one before Wells made two foul shots with 39.3 seconds remaining. Then, after a Penn State miss, Wells grabbed the rebound and added another free throw to clinch it. [RECAP]
THREE MORE NOTABALE GAMES
March 19, 1990 (PSU, 80-78): Ed Fogell tallied 20 points to lead Penn State over Maryland in the second round of the NIT in University Park, en route to a third-place tourney finish. This was the lone meeting vs. Maryland under Gary Williams.
Nov. 30, 1968 (UMD, 66-56): The last meeting in College Park was a loss for the Nittany Lions in the 1968-69 season opener.
Dec. 7, 1963 (PSU, 91-62): The largest scoring margin in the series was a 29-point decision in Penn State's favor in 1963. Former Maryland head coach Gary Williams was a freshman on that Terrapin squad. Penn State was 2-2 during Williams' time as a player.