Michigan 79, PENN STATE 72
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Jan. 30, 2016
NEW YORK (AP) - Penn State men's basketball's (11-11, 2-7) late rally fell short as Michigan (17-5, 7-2 Big Ten) defeated the Nittany Lions,79-72, in the first game of the 2016 Super Saturday College Hoops and Hockey doubleheader at Madison Square Garden.
Michigan took a 10-point lead three times in the first half and the Wolverines' biggest lead of the half came when Zak Irvin hit a 3 at the halftime buzzer to make it 38-26.
Irvin scored four points in a 7-0 run that gave the Wolverines a 60-43 lead and it looked like Michigan was getting ready to pull away.
But Shep Garner, who finished with 22 points, hit two 3s and Davis Zemgulis added another as the Nittany Lions got within 64-59 with 4:46 to play.
Duncan Robinson and Walton scored for Michigan to end the run and Penn State was no closer than six points the rest of the way
''We've got a youthful team and when they make mistakes, because they want to be perfect, it hurts for that 3-to-4 minute spurt that the other team goes on,'' Nittany Lions coach Patrick Chambers said. ''These younger kids are getting better and I am gaining more confidence in them.''
Garner was 1 of 5 from 3-point range in the first half but he finished 5 of 12 from long range. Penn State came into the game shooting 29 percent on 3s and finished 9 of 29 (31 percent).
''I just think it's confidence,'' Chambers said of Garner's shooting. ''We did a pretty good job of getting him some one-two-step 3-point shots. That's something else we've been talking about - other guys need to get Shep shots instead of him trying to get his shots off ball screens and dribble handles.''
Next up, Penn State travels to No. 3 Iowa to take on the Hawkeyes Wednesday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. on ESPNU.