I hate to ruin the good mood brought along by THON, so let’s just keep this short and sweet.

Penn State was blown out by Northwestern on the road Saturday afternoon, 60-39. That’s right, the same Northwestern team that sits a game and a half ahead of Penn State in the cellar of the Big Ten standings. Throughout the year, Penn State has usually kept it close, only to lose in the most heartbreaking fashion imaginable. Before today, its only lost by double-digits twice in the entire year.

But not today. This was just painful to watch, and even more painful to come to grips with after the fact. I can’t pinpoint a more crushing loss than this one, so to keep the cheerful THON vibes going, let’s get this over with.

How It Happened 

Despite the appalling final score, Penn State led by as much as nine early in the first half, thanks to a flurry of threes from Shep Garner and Geno Thorpe, who led the Nittany Lions with 13 points each. The substantial lead wouldn’t last long –surprisingly, I know– as the Wildcats embarked on a 10-0 run to leapfrog Penn State, 13-12. From that point on, it was all Northwestern, and it led the rest of the way.

The Wildcats took a 28-20 lead into halftime, while D.J. Newbill — who finished with a season low three points on 1-6 shooting from the field — was held scoreless throughout the first half. The Wildcats extended the lead to 12 after a sloppy start by Penn State, who just looked dazed and confused throughout the entire game.

Like they normally do, Penn State got right back into the fold behind an offensive surge from Thorpe, getting within four points of Northwestern. As fun as that was, it simply couldn’t last, as the Wildcats began to pour it on from downtown, jumping back out to a 50-36 lead in the game’s waning minutes, erasing Penn State’s chances at a comeback.

When it was all said and done, Northwestern emerged as the victor, sending the Nittany Lions home with a sour taste in their mouths after the lost. Penn State shot a woeful 27 percent from the floor, while coughing up the ball 14 times. Brandon Taylor was held scoreless, missing on all seven of his attempts, five of which came from downtown.

Player Of The Game 

Today’s game MVP honors go to Northwestern guard Tre Demps, who finished with 16 points, three assists, and two boards. He was clutch from beyond the arc, and played a big part in the Wildcats’ blowout victory.

Tweet Of The Game 

S T O P S H O O T I N G T H R E E S

— Black Shoe Diaries (@BSDtweet) February 21, 2015

This accurately sums up Penn State’s day shooting-wise. Welp.

Game Notes 

With the crushing loss, Penn State drops to 15-13 on the year, and a god awful 3-12 in the conference. Northwestern now improves to 4-10 in conference play, while still sitting under .500 at 13-14 on the year. Let’s just forget that this ever happened, okay?

What’s Next 

Penn State will face Iowa on Feb. 28 at 6:00 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center.

No more basketball for today, go back to dancing and enjoying life and feeling happy and all of the great things THON brings. Please.