UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's basketball team (5-6, 2-5) goes on the road for a 7 p.m. ET game on Wednesday, Jan. 27 at No. 13/15 Ohio State (12-4, 6-4). The mid-week matchup will be broadcast by Big Ten Network.
This is the first of two meetings between the Nittany Lions and the Buckeyes with this contest at Value City Arena rescheduled following a Jan. 6 postponement. Ohio State will visit the Bryce Jordan Center on Feb. 18.
WATCH: BTN and Fox Sports mobile app
Brandon Gaudin (pxp) & Robbie Hummel (analyst)
LISTEN: Penn State Sports Network
Steve Jones (pxp) & Dick Jerardi (analyst)
Affiliates: GoPSUsports.com/affiliates2021
Listen online: GoPSUsports.com/lionvision
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LIVE STATS: Penn State vs. Ohio State
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ROSTER: Penn State | Ohio State
SCHEDULE: Penn State | Ohio State
STATS: Penn State | Ohio State
GAME NOTES: Penn State | Ohio State
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
Coach: Chris Holtmann (Taylor, 1994)
Ohio State Record: 78-38 (Fourth season)
Career Record: 192-123 (10th season)
2020-21 Record: 12-4, 6-4 Big Ten
Leading Scorer
#4 Duane Washington Jr., Jr., G – 14.9 ppg
Leading Rebounders
#32 E.J. Liddell, So., F – 6.4 rpg
#25 Kyle Young, Sr., F – 6.4 rpg
Assists Leader
#13 CJ Walker, R-Sr., G – 4.2 apg
PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS
Interim Head Coach: Jim Ferry (Keene State, 1990)
Penn State Record: 5-6 (First season)
Career Record: 319-271 (20th season)
Top Scorer
#12 Myreon Jones, Jr., G – 15.9 ppg
Top Rebounder
#21 John Harrar, Sr., F – 8.2 rpg
Assists Leaders
#5 Jamari Wheeler, Sr., G – 4.0 apg
PENN STATE LAST GAME STARTERS
F -- 15 – Seth Lundy – Sr. | 12.7 ppg | 4.5 rpg
Note: Scored 16 points in second-straight game, had seven rebounds with two assists and two steals; Made timely treys and free throws vs. Northwestern
F -- 21 – John Harrar – Sr. | 7.2 ppg | 8.2 rpg
Note: Pulled down game-high 10 rebounds and had six points in win over Wildcats; Has 23 offensive rebounds in last four games; ranked 10th nationally with 3.72 per game.
G – 0 – Myreon Jones -- Jr. | 15.9 ppg | 3.0 rpg
Note: Scored 15 points and had season-best eight rebounds and game-high three steals; Has scored in double-figures in all but one game this season and had 20+ points in five-straight games.
G – 5 – Jamari Wheeler -- Sr. | 4.7 ppg | 5.0 rpg | 4.0 apg
Note: Hit big three to give Penn State a 79-73 lead late vs. Northwestern and finished night with eight points (2-3 3FG); Eighth on Penn State's career steals list with 164 and 19th among the NCAA Division I active career leaders
G – 12 – Izaiah Brockington -- Jr. | 14.1 ppg | 4.9 rpg
Note: Had game-high 21 points; One-handed dunk was No. 8 on ESPN's SportsCenter top plays Saturday night
STARTING 5
In each of its last three games, Penn State has recorded 10 steals and leads the Big Ten with 8.14 per game in conference games and a 8.64 per game average in all games. The Nittany Lions are ranked 27th nationally in that category.
Junior guards Izaiah Brockington and Myreon Jones have each led the Nittany Lions in scoring three times and shared honors twice. Brockington averaged 16.3 ppg and Jones 15.8 over those last eight games.
Senior forward John Harrar currently ranks 10th in the nation with 3.82 offensive rebounds per game and pulled down 23 in his last four games.
As of the Jan. 25 NCAA NET rankings, Penn State is now at 38, its second-highest ranking of 2020-21 (37-1/9/2021).
Penn State has one of the toughest, if not the toughest schedule in 2020-21. According to ESPN.com, the Nittany Lions are the SOS leader, are second on the NCAA SOS chart and third in the kenpom.com SOS rankings.
SERIES vs. OHIO STATE
Penn State has won four of the last six meetings with Ohio State. The two programs split their games in 2019-20 with both teams winning on their respective home courts.
The Nittany Lions' school-record eight-game Big Ten win streak started with a 90-76 victory over Ohio State in the Bryce Jordan Center (1/18/20).
Series streak: Penn State, W1
Last game: University Park, Pa.,
Penn State 90, No. 21 Ohio State 76, 1/18/2020
Overall series: OSU leads 39-19 (PS A: 6-21)
Ferry vs. Ohio State: First meeting
Series record and results from last 20 games are listed on page 5 of the game notes.
CH-CH-CH-CH-ANGES
More schedule updates send Penn State on the road to face No. 13/15 Ohio State Wednesday night which will fulfill the postponement of the game that was originally scheduled for Jan. 6.
The Jan. 9 Michigan game, postponed and reschedule for Jan. 27, will be rescheduled for a new date with both programs working with the Big Ten Conference office on options.
Opponent – Original Date – Before – After
Wisconsin -- Jan. 3 -- Jan. 27 -- Jan. 30
at Ohio State -- Jan. 6 – TBA -- Jan. 27
Michigan -- Jan. 9 -- Jan. 27 -- PPD
at Nebraska -- Jan. 30 -- PPD/TBA
NCAA NET & KENPOM.COM
Penn State is one of 10 Big Ten teams ranked in the top 50 of the most recent NCAA NET rankings and the only team among the group at or below .500. The kenpom.com calculations have Penn State at No. 44, the highest rated team with a record below .500.
Jan. 26, 2021
NET -- 39
Kenpom -- 46
SWIPE RIGHT
The Nittany Lions have recorded three-straight games with double digits in the steals category. Over the last 10 seasons, including 2020-21, Penn State has 42 games with 10+ steals, and 21, or half, in Big Ten play.
Penn State's three consecutive games with 10 steals (Illinois, Rutgers & Northwestern) marks the first time in the last decade they have achieved this feat.
2019-20 -- 8 -- 3
2017-18 -- 8 -- 2
2018-19 -- 7 -- 6 (2 consec games)
2016-17 -- 6 -- 2 (2 consec games, 2x)
2020-21 -- 4 -- 3 (3 consec games)
2011-12 -- 3 -- 1
2013-14 -- 3 -- 2
2012-13 -- 2 -- 1
2014-15 -- 1 -- 1
2015-16 -- 0 -- 0
BY THE NUMBERS
3 – The Nittany Lions have scored 80+ points in three Big Ten contests and five games overall in 2020-21.
11.0 – Senior forward John Harrar averaged 11.0 total rebounds in four games and had 23 offensive rebounds over a seven-day span.
+13.0 – Penn State posted a +13 rebound margin over its last two opponents, (40-27 Rutgers, 38-25 Northwestern).
20.0 – The Nittany Lions lead the Big Ten with 13.27 offensive rebounds per game and are ranked 20th nationally in that category.
48.2 – In Penn State's last two games, it went a combined 53-110 from the field for a 48.2 FG percentage.
78.6 – On Jan. 25, 2018, Penn State set its single-game record for 3-point field goal percentage at 78.6 (11-14). The Nittany Lions went 5-5 in the second half of the dramatic win at Ohio State.
125 – Established as a program in 1897, Penn State's 2020-21 season marks its 125th year. Penn State is one of the 10 oldest programs in the nation and won its 1,500th game at No. 15 Virginia Tech.
LAST TIME OUT: PSU HOLDS OFF WILDCATS FOR SECOND-STRAIGHT B1G WIN
Penn State came out on top with an 81-78 victory over Northwestern in the Bryce Jordan Center. Led by Izaiah Brockington's game-high 21 points, and three other Nittany Lions in double figures, Penn State picked up its second-straight Big Ten Conference win.
Brockington finished his perfect night at the foul line with two free throws with seven seconds to play for an 81-78 Penn State lead. Northwestern's 3-point attempt from the right wing at the buzzer was long.
The Nittany Lions withstood a furious second-half shooting performance from Northwestern. The Wildcats shot 70 percent (14-20) from the field through the first 13:18 of the period, but Penn State's defense anchored down and held the Wildcats to a 1-7 mark in the final 4:02.
The Nittany Lions swung the momentum back in their favor. Down 73-69 with 4:24 to play, Penn State used a 10-0 run to snatch a 79-73 lead. Northwestern cut the lead to one with 12 seconds left in the game. Brockington calmly made his final two free throws to seal the win for the Nittany Lions.
Seth Lundy had 16 points, and Myreon Jones and Sam Sessoms had 15 and 12, respectively. John Harrar had a game-best 10 rebounds, his second-straight double-figure rebounding game and fourth of the last five.
The game saw 18 lead changes and nine ties. Northwestern opened the second half with a miss, but strung together five-straight field goals, including two treys, to take a 45-44 lead by 16:49. Penn State made five of its next seven to pull out to 57-51 at the midway point.
On a 7-0 run, the Wildcats took back the lead and building it to four with a 73-69 score with 4:24 to play. A Lundy triple brought Penn State within one, 73-72, and he followed with two free throws for a 74-73 lead.
Brockington's layup and a trey by Jamari Wheeler put Penn State up by six, 79-73, but Pete Nance's counter-three with 36 seconds to go kept NU alive at 79-76. Miller Kopp had two free throws to bring the Wildcats within one 79-78, before Brockington added his two free throws for the final margin.
Kopp led Northwestern in scoring with 19 points on 5-11 shooting while Pete Nance had the Wildcats' top rebound total with seven.
A slow start for both teams saw PSU with an early 4-0 lead.
Over nearly five minutes, 12 of the game's 18 lead changes took place as the two teams traded scores. Both teams had 7-0 runs, but during the final minute of the half, the Nittany Lions outscored the Wildcats 7-3, including five points by Jones on a triple and buzzer-beating runner, to grab a 38-33 lead going into the break.
FOLLOW PENN STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL VIRTUALLY
Please stay connected and follow Penn State men's basketball virtually throughout season. While we are unable to host fans this season due to COVID-19 protocols, fans are able to join the interest list for tickets for the 2021-22 men's basketball season. Sign up for the 2021-22 interest list by clicking here.
