Penn State men’s basketball (7-8, 4-7 Big Ten) held on for a tight win against the Maryland Terrapins (10-9, 4-8 Big Ten) 55-50 Friday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center. It was the Nittany Lions fourth straight win at home in conference play.

Izaiah Brockington led the team with 13 points and added six rebounds. Jamari Wheeler had a nice offensive day with 11 points, while John Harrar added nine points and 12 rebounds to help the Nittany Lions pull out the win.

How It Happened

Seth Lundy got the scoring started with a wide open slam dunk. Jamari Wheeler got a key defensive stop on the inbound and then hit a three.

Maryland had a turn over problem early on, but it was able to recover and not let it turn into points for the Nittany Lions.

John Harrar got big steal that ignited the bench and got a big hug from Jim Ferry. Penn State was unable to convert on the offensive end, however, and that kept Maryland in the game.

Izaiah Brockington was able to break a scoreless streak to knock down a floater close to the bucket. On the defensive side, the Nittany Lions forced yet another turnover, their sixth in six minutes.

Maryland hit a wide open three on the next possession, and then Penn State turned the ball over. For the next couple possessions, both teams couldn’t make a shot or they turned the ball over. The Terps broke the scoring drought with a layup.

Even though the shots weren’t falling, the defense was strong for the Nittany Lions. Brockington got a really good block, but nothing came of that on the offensive end. Maryland was matching Penn State in defensive game play.

Brockington broke a six-minute scoring drought, and then Trent Buttrick had a wide-open slam dunk to take the lead back. The Terps would score on the next possession to tie the game back up, but Wheeler hit a three to extend the lead.

Maryland went on a run and took a five point lead with four minutes left in the half. Penn State seemed to be rushing shots to try and get back in it, and that led the Terps to get into a groove offensively.

Myles Dread broke a 12-0 scoring run by the Terps to score his first points of the night. Harrar was then able to get his first points with a turn around jump hook in the paint. Wheeler got a steal and that lead to a Dread three, and suddenly Penn State was back.

Brockington hit a baseline shot to extend the Nittany Lions’ scoring run to 9-0. Maryland drew a foul with three seconds left in the half, but couldn’t get anything out of it. Both teams went into the locker room tied at 23.

Maryland scored the first points of the second half. Harrar scored the first bucket of the half for the Nittany Lions, but the Terps were staying right on their toes. Brockington was able to even it up on the next possession, however.

The Terps hit a shot clock beating three, but Myreon Jones hit a nice midrange shot as a response. Harrar then drew a foul on the next offensive possession and made one of two free throws.

Maryland was able to get to he line and make both free throws, but Brockington matched that, getting to the line and make both free throws as well. The scoring going back and forth was a theme for the first part of the second half.

Sam Sessoms got his night started with a floater going in. The Terps responded with a powerful slam dunk and the game was tied again. Wheeler hit a wide open three as the shot clock expired to take the lead again for the Nittany Lions.

Buttrick was able to get to the free throw line and made both of his shots, pushing that lead to five. After a good defensive stop, Sessoms put up a very nice layup and Penn State was in a groove.

Maryland went on a little bit of a run, though, and they were proving to still be in the game. Harrar was able to stop the run as he hit both free throws.

Penn State was able to get to the line on multiple possessions in a row, as Brockington hit one of two and Harrar hit both of his. Then after a big rebound from Harrar, Dread hit a wide open three to extend the lead.

Maryland had multiple opportunities to score some easy baskets, but they missed and turned the ball over. Penn State was playing sloppy and the Terps just couldn’t capitalize.

The Terps got close though, as they hit big free throws to bring them within a possession. But Wheeler also hit big free throws to make it a two possession game. Penn State made key stops when it needed to and pulled out the game 55-50.

Takeaways

• Penn State’s defense was very strong. It forced 11 turnovers and had four steals in the first half. The whole reason the Nittany Lions were in the game in the first half was their defense since their offense was so inconsistent. The defense is going to be key if they are going to win more games in the Big Ten.
• Seth Lundy and Myreon Jones need to be better. Lundy has been inconsistent of late, and Jones especially struggled in the first half tonight. These two are some of the best players on the team, both need to be better offensively and they need to be more consistent.
• After a bad loss against Wisconsin, this was an important game to have for Penn State. It reestablishes the confidence that the Nittany Lions can compete with any team they go up against. However, their biggest challenge is being a good road team, which is something they will have to work on when they travel to Michigan State next.

What’s Next

The Nittany Lions travel to East Lansing on Tuesday, February 9 to take on Michigan State at 7 p.m. The game will air on ESPN.