The Penn State Nittany Lions begin Big Ten Tournament play in Omaha, Nebraska, on Wednesday as they face the No. 5 Washington Huskies. The Nittany Lions will finish up the round-robin against the No. 4 USC Trojans on Thursday. As the postseason approaches, here are some major storylines for the matchups.
The new format for 2025
With the addition of Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington into the Big Ten, the conference has opted for a round-robin and single-elimination format. The tournament will have a round-robin system of four pools of three teams, with each team in their respective pool playing each other from Tuesday to Friday. The team with the 2-0 record or the highest-seeded team with a 1-1 record--when all teams have a 1-1 record--in each pool will advance to the semifinals. The semifinals and championship, being played on Saturday and Sunday, will be a single-elimination format.
Penn State: Climbing the ladder in Year 2
The Nittany Lions are just one year separated from their historic run to the Big Ten Championship. They fell to the No. 2 Nebraska Cornhuskers by a score of 2-1 after beating No. 1 Illinois and No. 4 Michigan twice to get there. The go-ahead grand slam by Penn State third baseman Bryce Molinaro in the first meeting with Michigan has been immortalized in program history. The Nittany Lions will have to navigate the new tournament and two tough pitching staffs to get back to a chance at the title game.
Washington: Looking to carry momentum
The Huskies have used a late-season surge to maintain a spot in the Top 5 of the Big Ten standings. Having taken series victories from Iowa and USC at home, Washington has soared through its final few weeks. The middle of that stretch was marked by getting swept by Oregon--the fifth-ranked team in the nation at the time--but despite the ups and downs, the Huskies have prevailed. Center fielder Malakhi Knight leads the charge on the base path, capturing 24 steals on the season, with two of those coming in the last two games against USC last weekend.
USC: Hedges keys Trojans as all-around star
Fans cannot look at this USC team without appreciating the work that third baseman and right-handed pitcher Ethan Hedges has done this year. The junior is in his first season on the mound, however, his nine saves are tied for second in the Big Ten. Hedges made the All-Big Ten First Team and Big Ten All-Defensive Team as a third baseman. He leads the Trojans in multiple hitting stat categories as well, including batting average, on-base percentage, and home runs, among others.
1. Wednesday Projected Starters
No. 9 Penn State: LHP Ryan DeSanto (7-2, 4.30 ERA)
No. 5 Washington: RHP Max Banks (7-3, 3.67 ERA)
2. Thursday Projected Starters
No. 4 USC: To be announced.
No. 9 Penn State: To be announced.
Portney's Picks
The Huskies' lack of power looks to play right into the hands of the Nittany Lions. The Trojans, however, look like a team that can rely on multiple players to deliver on both sides of the field. It begs the question: "Will Penn State fans get to see the magic of 2024 relived in this postseason run, or will the Nittany Lions' lack of solid bullpen arms catch up to them?" I think it'll be the latter, as I see Penn State going 1-1 with a win over Washington and a loss to USC.