Feb. 26, 2016
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. ââ'¬" Behind 41 points and 10 combined 3-pointers from Shep Garner and Brandon Taylor, the Nittany Lions fended off a furious Nebraska rally in a 56-55 triumph during their third-straight win on Thursday.
Penn State (15-13, 6-9) led the Cornhuskers (14-15, 6-10) by 18, 44-26, with 13:40 on the clock, and things were operating smoothly on both ends of the floor. However, the Cornhuskers scored the next nine points to begin a surge.
Nebraska used an 11-0 run to tie the game at 55-55 in the final minute, but it was Shep Garner's free throw with 7.2 seconds to play that lifted the Lions to their fourth win in their last five outings and their third in a row inside the BJC.
"I was really proud of Shep (Garner) at the end there. He saw that alleyway there. We had a feeling he was going to see that," said head coach Patrick Chambers. "And we knew it was one-on-one or hopefully two shots, so he made the one that counted."
Chambers said that Taylor took command of the huddles in the second half to ensure that the Lions would find a way to win. Penn State took two big punches from Nebraska in the second half. One sliced the Lion lead to 47-41 with 7:54 to go.
Taylor and Garner then countered with back-to-back threes to make it a 12-point game with 6:55 to go. However, that would be Penn State's final field goal of the night. Instead, the Lions needed to find a way to slow the Husker surge, which ultimately tied the game with 50.3 seconds to go.
Following Garner's free throw, Donovon Jack contested the last-ditch shot from Shavon Shields to clinch the Penn State victory. In previous seasons, Taylor is convinced that under similar circumstances the result may have been different for the Blue and White.
"I think the turnovers from myself and a few other players is what got them back in the game," said Taylor. "I think that's a great win for us we grinded it out and in past years we might have not won that game. That's a great job from everybody and like coach said in the locker room, that's a great win and you only have to win by one, so we'll take it."
The result goes back to what has been said frequently about Taylor in 2015-16. The Tabernacle, N.J., native is carrying himself in a manner that permeates a refuse to lose mantra within the team. Therefore, it's no coincidence that the Lions are finding ways to win during the stretch run of the season. Taylor just won't let the Lions stumble.
"His mentality is one of a boxer. Just keep fighting, keep punching. His leadership has been outstanding. Outstanding," said Chambers. "He commanded some of those huddles out there late in the second half. He was the one being more vocal when I was trying to give him that time before I went into the huddle and he commanded it. It was great to hear, great to see, and I felt very confident down the stretch. No matter what was happening."
Moving into the final three games, two of which coming at home, the Lions are going to need more scoring output outside of Garner and Taylor. The duo was fun to watch on Thursday, but the rest of the team accounted for just 15 points in the Nebraska game.
"We have to continue to share the ball. Payton (Banks) has been playing terrific," said Chambers. "Josh (Reaves) is now. Josh (Reaves) was in foul trouble. But we have to keep working on other guys stepping up and making plays. We're a much better team when we have three and four guys in double figures."
Penn State now shifts focus towards a matchup against No. 6 Michigan State on Sunday in the Breslin Center. The Nittany Lions are in sole possession of ninth place in the Big Ten standings with three regular season games to play before the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis.