UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's basketball team picked up its second-straight win with an 83-74 victory over Indiana on Saturday afternoon inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
With the win, Penn State completes the regular-season sweep of Indiana for for the first time since 2009 and just the second time in program history. The Nittany Lions have won four games in a row against Hoosiers and five of the last six.
In a tight first half that featured featuring six ties, six lead changes, and each team having leads no larger than four points, the Nittany Lions strung together an 8-1 run to close out the final 2:45 of the first half and never surrendered the lead from there. Penn State limited the Hoosiers to just 2-of-15 from three-point range in the game and every PSU starter scored in double figures.
Senior Ace Baldwin Jr. led the way for the Nittany Lions, scoring 23 points on 7-of-12 shooting to go along with nine assists, four rebounds and four steals in 40 minutes of action. Qudus Wahab finished with a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 11 boards, while Zach Hicks dropped 17 points, including four threes, marking his seventh-straight game scoring in double figures. D'Marco Dunn tallied 13 points, while Nick Kern Jr. added 11 points and five rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- A back-and-forth first half saw six ties, six lead changes and neither team lead by more than four until the final 1:04.
- With the score tied at 32-32 with 2:55 left in the opening stanza, eight points from Ace Baldwin Jr. comprised an 8-0 Nittany Lion streak over the next 2:30 as Penn State pulled ahead by eight at 40-32 with 25 seconds left on the first-half clock.
- Indiana added a free throw in the final seconds, but the Hoosiers were held without a field goal for the final 2:55 as the Nittany Lions took a 40-33 edge into halftime.
- A D'Marco Dunn triple opened the second half to put Penn State ahead by double-digits and serve as the front end of a 7-2 Nittany Lion streak that gave Penn State a 47-35 advantage with 16:40 to play.
- The Hoosiers strung together a 14-5 stretch of the next 4:17 to trim the Nittany Lion lead to three at 52-49.
- Indiana was within two at 56-54 two minutes later before Hicks hit his third three of the day and Puff Johnson followed with a floater in the lane to force an Indiana timeout at the 8:57 mark as Penn State pulled back ahead by seven at 61-54.
- Nick Kern Jr. followed with five points in the 80 seconds following the Hoosier timeout to cap Penn State's 10-2 run and put the Nittany Lions back up by double digits at 66-56 with 7:33 to play.
- Penn State kept Indiana at arm's length until a 7-2 Hoosier streak from 4:28 to 2:58 had IU back within five at 72-67.
- Kern Jr. followed with a pair of free throws before Zach Hicks hit a dagger of a 3-pointer and completed a four-point play to put the Nittany Lions up 78-67 with 1:49 to play.
- Indiana put up a fight in the final minutes, but Penn State was able to close out the 83-74 win to complete the regular-season sweep of the Hoosiers.
GAME NOTES
- Penn State's victory completed the season sweep of Indiana after the Nittany Lions also defeated the Hoosiers 85-71 in Bloomington on Feb. 3.
- The Nittany Lions have won four in a row and five of the last six games against Indiana.
- The Nittany Lions held Indiana without a made 3-pointer until 1:35 in the second half. Penn State shot an efficient 43% (9-21) from behind the arc.
- Every starter scored in double figures for the Nittany Lions.
- Penn State eclipsed 80 points for the sixth time in Big Ten play.
- Ace Baldwin Jr. scored 23 points, 15 in the first half, shooting an impressive 7-of-12 from the field and making all eight of his free throws. Baldwin Jr. assisted on nine Penn State baskets.
- Qudus Wahab recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 boards.
- Zach Hicks scored in double-figures for the seventh-straight game with 16 points, including four 3-pointers. He added seven rebounds and an assist for the game.
- Nick Kern Jr. tallied 11 points, six rebounds and an assist.
- D'Marco Dunn dropped 13 points along with one assist and one rebound to his final stat line.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Mike Rhoades
Ace Baldwin Jr. & Zach Hicks
HIGHLIGHTS
UP NEXT
- Penn State travels to Iowa Tuesday looking to complete the regular-season sweep of the Hawkeyes. Tipoff from Iowa City is slated for 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network.
The 2023-24 Penn State men's basketball season is presented by Highmark Health.