Penn State men’s basketball (7-2, 0-1 Big Ten) was overmatched in Saturday afternoon’s game against No. 6 Ohio State (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten), as it lost by a final score of 106-74.

The Nittany Lions kept in close in the first half, but the second half proved to be totally different. Ohio State was able to do whatever it wanted on the offensive end and completely dominated Penn State.

The final ten minutes of the second half were a complete embarrassment for Penn State, as it seemed the Buckeyes were getting open looks on every single possession.

How It Happened

Penn State won the opening tip but failed to score on the opening possession. After trading a few scoreless possessions, Ohio State’s Kaleb Wesson hit a deep three for the first points of the game. Wesson scored seven of the first nine points for Ohio State.

The Ohio State defense was suffocating the Penn State offense early on, with almost all of Penn State’s shots coming from the perimeter. The rare time the Nittany Lions got into the paint, the tough Ohio State defense would alter the shot.

With 11:38 left in the first half, Ohio State led 13-9, with the Penn State offense not scoring for over four minutes. The Nittany Lions started off the half shooting 1-7 from three-point range.

Lamar Stevens got into foul trouble early with two quick fouls, so Pat Chambers had to limit his star player’s minutes for most of the first half. The Penn State offense struggled without Stevens on the floor. The turning point of the first half was a flagrant foul on Penn State’s John Harrar. That prompted Ohio State to have a four-point possession which extended the Ohio State lead to 13.

Izaiah Brockington jumped in the passing lane late in the first half and picked up a steal and a slam, which brought Penn State within seven. Brockington was a much-needed spark for the Nittany Lions off the bench, as he totaled 10 points in the first half. He stepped up with Lamar Stevens relegated to the bench.

Izaiah Brockington has shown his athleticism before.

He just did it again.@TheOnlyiZB | @PennStateMBB pic.twitter.com/oyt17d5bk8

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) December 7, 2019

Ohio State answered back and brought a 46-35 lead into halftime over Penn State.

The second half started off with Mike Watkins finally making an impact on the game, as he had a sequence of multiple offensive boards and buckets and a nasty block on the defensive end.

With 15:41 remaining in the game, Ohio State led 54-45 as Penn State battled to stay alive.

It all changed for Penn State when Lamar Stevens picked up his fourth foul and then was charged with a technical foul for his fifth. The Nittany Lions were without their best player for the final 13 minutes of the game.

Curtis Jones Jr. went down with an injury shortly after and slowly walked off under his own power. He did not return to the game.

The rest of the game was a complete slaughter in favor of Ohio State. It was a three-point barrage, with Penn State unable to guard the three-point line. Along with the abysmal defense, the Penn State offense became stagnant and was unable to get anything going.

Ohio State broke it completely open, with a final score of 106-74.

Takeaways

• The Penn State defense had no answers for Ohio State, especially Kaleb Wesson. Wesson was able to do whatever he wanted on the offensive end, as Ohio State shot lights out from three-point range. Wesson finished the game with 28 points and 10 rebounds. The Buckeyes shot an absurd 54% from three-point range.
• Mike Watkins had a minimal impact on this game. He was unable to guard Kaleb Wesson and scored just six points with only three rebounds
• Lamar Stevens’ struggles with foul trouble throughout the game proved costly for Penn State. In the second half, the offense struggled to get buckets to keep up with Ohio State.
• The free throw differential was eye-opening. Ohio State attempted 37 throws and made 30 of them. Penn State shot 20 and made just 14 of them.

What’s Next?

It doesn’t get any easier for Penn State as the No. 3 Maryland Terrapins come to town Tuesday night. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN 2.