Feb. 28, 2018
February 28, 2018
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's basketball team travels to New York City for the 21st annual Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament. The No. 7 seed Nittany Lions will face No. 10 seed Northwestern on Thursday, March 1. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. at Madison Square Garden.
WATCH: BTN and BTN2Go
Kevin Kugler, Shon Morris and Rick Pizzo
LISTEN: Penn State Sports Network, Steve Jones (pxp) and Dick Jerardi (analyst)
2017-18 Affiliates or online at GoPSUsports.com/lionvision
FOLLOW: Twitter @PennStateMBB & @Coach_Chambers | Facebook | Instagram @PennStateMBB.
NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS
RECORD: 15-16, 6-12 Big Ten
Coach: Chris Collins (5th year at Northwestern)
2017-18 Leading Scorer
#20 Scottie Lindsey, Sr., G/F - 15.3 ppg
2017-18 Leading Rebounder:
#5 Dererk Pardon, Jr., C - 7.1 rpg
2017-18 Assists Leader:
#30 Bryant McIntosh, Sr., G - 4.6 apg
PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS
RECORD: 19-12, 9-9 Big Ten
2017-18 Leading Scorer:
#10 Tony Carr, So., G - 19.9 ppg
2017-18 Leading Active Rebounder:
#11 Lamar Stevens, So. F - 6.3 rpg
2017-18 Assists Leader:
#10 Tony Carr, So., G - 4.5 apg
OPENING TIP
Penn State's No. 7 seed for the 2018 Big Ten Tournament is the highest seed earned by coach Patrick Chambers and is tied for the second-highest seed ever received since the Tournament began in 1998.
Seed Years
#6 2011, 2009
#7 2018, 2008, 2001, 1998
SERIES RECORD VS. NORTHWESTERN
Penn State and Northwestern will meet for the third time this season, with each team winning earlier matchups on their home court. The Nittany Lions won 78-63 (1/5) and the Wildcats took a 70-61 win at Allstate Arena (1/20).
The teams have had three previous occasions when they have meet three times, twice in the course of a season (1999, 2006) and once in a calendar year (2016).
Streak: Northwestern, W1
Overall series: Penn State leads 30-19
at neutral sites: Northwestern leads 2-1
Big Ten Tournament: Northwestern leads 2-1
The full list of all games in the series is on pages 187-88 of the Penn State media guide.
QUICK HITS
- Penn State earned a bye in the Big Ten Tournament for only the second time in the 20-year tournament history. The Nittany Lions' previous bye was in 2016.
- Guard Tony Carr became the first Penn State men's basketball sophomore to reach the 1,000-point mark (62 games, 16.3 ppg, 2016-17 & 2017-18). Carr scored his 15th point vs. Nebraska on a free throw at the 10:57 mark of the second half.
- Senior guard Shep Garner, with 11 points at Nebraska, surpassed the 1,500-point mark for his career. From Chester, Pa., he also has 304 3-point field goals, 305 assists and needs one rebound for 350 in his career.
- With a Big Ten single-game high for 2017-18 and game-best total seven steals at Nebraska, junior guard Josh Reaves now also has a new career mark. Reaves also places his name in the Penn State record book with the seven steals tied for third-best all-time.
B1G HONORS
Four Nittany Lion individuals were recognized Feb. 26 as the Big Ten Conference office announced All-Big Ten end-of-season honors on the Big Ten Network.
All-Big Ten
Tony Carr 6-5 So. G
All-Defensive Team
Josh Reaves 6-4 Jr. G
Mike Watkins 6-9 RSo. F
Honorable Mention
Lamar Stevens 6-8 So. F
Mike Watkins 6-9 RSo. F
Sportsmanship Award
Julian Moore 6-10 Gr. F
Penn State had three players earn All-Big Ten recognition for the first time since 2008-09, when Talor Battle (first-team), Jamelle Cornley (second-team) and Stanley Pringle (honorable-mention) were selected.
Carr is the seventh Nittany Lion to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors (eight selections). He joins Talor Battle, in 2008-09, as the only sophomore to be named to the first team.
Reaves and Watkins inclusion on the Big Ten All-Defensive Team gave Penn State two selections for the first time ever.
BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CITY
The Nittany Lions visited New York City earlier this year when they played in Brooklyn's Barclays Center and split a pair of games in the Legends Classic. Penn State topped Pittsburgh 85-54 (11/20) and lost to then-16th-ranked Texas A&M 98-87 (11/21).
The Nittany Lions are 3-3 under coach Patrick Chambers in New York City with a 2-2 mark at the Barclays Center and 1-1 record at Madison Square Garden.
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
Penn State men's basketball has played at Madison Square Garden 21 times, including 17 times at the current building. The Nittany Lions are 11-6 in MSG IV with their last win in the "Mecca" coming vs. St. John's, 92-76, in the Holiday Festival on Dec. 18, 2016.
Coach Patrick Chambers brings a 2-1 record to MSG. On January 30, 2016, Penn State faced Michigan in the B1G Super Saturday event at MSG, falling 79-72 in the inaugural event. His first win at MSG came on January 15, 2011, when his Boston University Terriers defeated Albany 63-44.
Prior to its two trips to MSG in 2016, Penn State won five-straight games in NIT postseason play, including two wins vs. Notre Dame (67-59, 3/31) and vs. Baylor (69-63, 4/2) to claim the 2009 NIT championship.
Penn State has played two Big Ten opponents in MSG in its history, and is 0-2 in those games: Michigan (L, 1/30/2016) and Minnesota (L, NIT, 3/26/1998).