PDF BOX SCORE
COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the fifth time in the last six meetings in the series, the Penn State-Ohio State men's basketball game was decided by four points or less with the Buckeyes coming out on top 74-70 Thursday night. Junior forward Lamar Stevens and senior guard Josh Reaves each scored 20 points with Stevens pulling down 12 rebounds for his ninth career double-double.
"Hard fought battle, Penn State, Ohio State, it seems like it always is," said Nittany Lion coach Patrick Chambers. "I am proud of my guys, we got down 15, went down again in the second half, went down again in the second half, and we just kept fighting back. I'm really proud of the leadership of Lamar Stevens, Josh Reaves. We had our chances. We have to learn how to play hard and together without fouling and then we have to be able to finish games…We'll learn from this. Obviously we are not happy with losing. There are no moral victories, but I felt like we got better today."
In the last three minutes, the Nittany Lions made their charge to erase Ohio State's seven-point lead as Reaves had two steals and converted them to baskets, freshman guard Myles Dread nailed a three-pointer and freshman guard Rasir Bolton added two points from the free throw line.
Penn State took a one-point lead, 70-69, with 92 seconds left in the game on Reaves' fifth steal of the game and subsequent dunk on the other end. The Buckeyes retook the lead, 71-70, and Stevens' apparent layup off a Reaves' inbound pass was a fraction of a second late and a final field goal attempt with 21 seconds left rimmed out. Ohio State converted three of its four trips to the line for the 74-70 final.
Ohio State took a nine-point lead out of the locker room on four-straight field goals, 46-47. Freshman guard Rasir Bolton, who finished the game with 15 points, used six of his eight points early in the half to key a 10-0 Nittany Lion run over four minutes. A reverse layup by Stevens put Penn State up 47-46 at the 13-minute mark and Stevens connected on two free throws for a three-point Penn State lead, 49-46, its largest of the second half.
Duane Washington buried a 3-pointer for Ohio State to tie the game at 49 and then he added a three-point play for a 54-51 Buckeye advantage with just under 10 minutes to play. Nittany Lion sophomore guard Jamari Wheeler fought through the lane for his layup and Stevens added two more free throws to put Penn State up 55-54 and traded baskets with the Buckeyes for another one-point PSU lead, 57-56.
Luther Muhammad made six-straight free throws for Ohio State to pull the Buckeyes back to a three-point lead, 62-59, as Reaves picked up his fourth personal foul, Wheeler his third of the night and John Harrar was tagged with his second. C.J. Jackson and Stevens each scored and Jackson hit another jumper before a flagrant foul was assessed to put the Buckeyes at the line for two more free throws and a seven-point lead, 68-61, with 3:14 remaining in the contest.
Penn State struggled, shooting under 30 percent for the first 7:30 of the game and Ohio State's 26-5 run gave the Buckeyes a 15-point lead with 5:14 left in the first half. The Nittany Lions fought their way back to a three-point halftime deficit, 34-31, after a Penn State scoring spree saw six of the next eight baskets fall. OSU combined a scoring drought and a string of turnovers to open the door for the Nittany Lions.
A Reaves steal and score followed by five points from Stevens in the final 81 seconds of the first half saw Ohio State's double-digit lead dwindle to just three.
The Nittany Lions tied their season-high total for steals with 12, five each from Reaves and Wheeler, for Wheeler's Big Ten career-high total. Wheeler's extra effort on a dive for the ball resulted in a steal and critical extra possession for the Nittany Lions.
Penn State outrebounded Ohio State 20-12 in the second half and had only 11 turnovers to the Buckeyes' 18.
Muhammad had 20 points for Ohio State to share the game-high honors with Stevens and Reaves while Andre Wesson and C.J. Jackson had 15 points each. Andre Wesson was the top rebounder for the Buckeyes with 10.
Penn State returns home to the Bryce Jordan Center Tuesday, Feb. 12 for an 8:30 p.m. ET game vs. No. 7 Michigan.
For information or to purchase Penn State men's single-game tickets for the next home game vs. Michigan on Tuesday, Feb. 12, visit GoPSUsports.com/mbbsinglegametix or call 1-800-NITTANY, weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Keep up to date with the latest information from Coach Chambers and the Nittany Lions on Twitter by following @Coach_Chambers and @PennStateMBB, on Facebook and Instagram at @PennStateMBB.
