Penn State battled Northwestern at the Bryce Jordan Center on Thursday night, coming out with a hard-fought 84-80 win.
Zach Hicks led the way for the Nittany Lions with 20 points on 50% shooting from three, but there was a different lead storyline from the game.
The Nittany Lions were up 82-80 with under 10 seconds left when Ty Berry clanked a three to take the lead. The ball was rebounded by Northwestern guard Jalen Leach, who was blocked by D’Marco Dunn, and then forward Brooks Barnhizer made the putback layup.
However, the refs called a goaltend on Dunn, which upon review was overturned. Since the ball was in Barnhizer’s hand when the whistles blew, his layup did not count, and Northwestern retained possession.
The Wildcats turned it over on the ensuing possession, leading to a Penn State victory. The turnover was very controversial, as it evidently appeared that Yanic Konan-Niederhauser fouled Northwestern center Matthew Nicholson.
The Penn State defense stands TALL and secures the game. 💪 pic.twitter.com/6pMXF1eKAl
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) January 3, 2025
The Nittany Lions will happily take the win, but the game showed weaknesses. Here’s what I took away from the game:
Can’t rely on free throws every game
Penn State shot 45 free throws on Thursday night to Northwestern’s 21. Northwestern is a very physical defensive team, but the Nittany Lions were the beneficiary of a plethora of calls. Big Ten officials tend to swallow the whistle more than the average referee, but this game was clearly different. Credit to Penn State for battling through the tough game and making some key shots late, but this is not sustainable long-term.
Too many turnovers
The Nittany Lions struggled to take care of the ball on Thursday against Northwestern. At times, it felt as if Penn State was playing too fast for their own good, throwing erratic cross-court passes that often got intercepted. Northwestern made life tough for Penn State on both ends, but their aggressive defense forced the Nittany Lions into poor decisions throughout the game.
Ace Baldwin Jr. committed six turnovers, and the Wildcats executed a real solid game plan to contain him. Penn State has to improve upon this area before Sunday’s matchup against Indiana, and I trust head coach Mike Rhoades to make the necessary adjustments.
Zach Hicks stepped up, again
The six-foot-eight forward bailed out the Nittany Lions on Thursday, providing the team with some key shots and moments to keep the team ahead in the contest. His 20 points led the team, and he made five of his eight shots.
Hicks had a crucial and-one floater that put Penn State ahead 80-75 with three minutes remaining, offering some much-needed cushion in crunch time. Hicks has been terrific this season, as he’s now shooting 44.7% from three this season, a huge improvement from his 34.2% last season.
There were more negatives than positives from this game, but the only thing that matters is the final score. Penn State added another win to their record, and improved to 12-2 overall and 2-1 in conference. Northwestern drops to 10-4 overall, and 1-2 in Big Ten play.
Penn State will return to the Palestra in Philadelphia to battle Indiana on Sunday at Noon. Get in there and be loud, Nittany Lion basketball faithful!
Other notes and statistics:
- Penn State - 50% FG, 27% 3PT, 80% FT, 9 steals, 5 blocks, 16 turnovers
- Northwestern - 46% FG, 27% 3PT, 86% FT, 9 steals, 4 blocks, 15 turnovers
- Baldwin - 17 points, 7 assists, 4 steals, 40 minutes
- Johnson - 11 points, 3 rebounds, 21 minutes
- Dilione V - 10 points, 2 steals, 5/9 FG, 26 minutes
- Konan Niederhauser - 9 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 28 minutes
- Kern - 9 points, 4 rebounds, 23 minutes
- Dunn: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 25 minutes