Mike Rhoades’s second season as the head coach of the Penn State men’s basketball program has completely fallen apart. After starting the year 12-2, the Nittany Lions are now 13-10 after a 78-54 loss to UCLA on Saturday afternoon. Now, on Tuesday night, riding a five-game losing streak, Penn State will finish its West Coast road trip at USC.
A midseason injury to Ace Baldwin Jr. threatened to derail Penn State’s season, but Baldwin, the Bob Cousy Award finalist, returned quickly to log huge minutes and carry a heavy workload for Rhoades. However, it was an injury to the team’s center, not its point guard, that appears to have ended the season and is threatening to keep Penn State out of the Big Ten Tournament.
Yanic Konan Niederhauser missed last Tuesday’s home matchup with Minnesota because of a lower-leg injury that he reportedly suffered during practice. He was also unable to play against the Bruins and if he cannot go on Tuesday night, the Nittany Lions may fall another game behind Washington, Minnesota, and Northwestern at the bottom of the conference standings.
USC, on the other hand, is also looking to stave off a collapse in Year 1 under Eric Musselman. The Trojans have dropped three of their last four outings, including a 77-75 loss to Northwestern, another Big Ten bottom-feeder. This could be Penn State’s final chance to save the season and qualify for the Big Ten tournament, and here’s how you can watch to see if desperation has kicked in.
How to watch USC vs. Penn State
- Date: Tuesday, February 11
- Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
- Venue: Galen Center (Los Angeles, CA)
- How to Watch: BTN
- How to stream: Fubo TV
- USC record: 13-10 (5-7)
- Penn State record: 13-11 (3-10)