A week ago, the Penn State Nittany Lions were alone in last place in the Big Ten and riding a seven-game losing streak. The season seemed all but over. But now, there’s life. Back-to-back wins over Nebraska and Minnesota have pushed the Nittany Lions to just one game behind USC, Iowa, Minnesota, and Northwestern for a spot in the Big Ten tournament.
To get there, Penn State must pick up a road win over a 16-11 Indiana team that beat them by six earlier in the year. The Hoosiers have recently struggled to win, losing six of their last eight games. However, they’ve played a lot better over this stretch than their record would indicate. In February, Indiana has wins over 13th-ranked Purdue and 11th-ranked Michigan State and lost by just three and four, respectively, to first-place Michigan and sixth-place UCLA.
According to The Bracket Project’s bracket matrix, a consensus ranking of the sport’s top bracketologists, the Hoosiers are the last team in the NCAA tournament as things stand today. A loss to Penn State would put Indiana on the wrong side of the bubble.
In an effort to save their own season and play spoiler to their conference rivals, the Nittany Lions will be without senior forward Puff Johnson. Johnson injured his wrist in a January game against Michigan State and was just ruled out for the remainder of the season last week. While initially struggling without one of its leaders, Penn State seems to have begun to figure out how to play with the pieces available.
The key to tonight’s meeting will be the Nittany Lions’ ability to shoot from deep. In their six-point loss to the Hoosiers earlier this year, Penn State went just 3/21 from three, nearly 20% below their season average of 33.4%. Defensively, the Nittany Lions must find a way to shut down Oumar Ballo. The seven-footer averages 13 points and nearly 10 rebounds and totaled a 25-point, 13 rebound, three assist, and two block stat line the last time these two teams met.
How to Watch - Penn State vs Indiana:
WHEN: 8:30 pm eastern time
WHERE: Assembly Hall
TELEVISION: Big Ten Network
Series History
Indiana owns a 44-17 all-time record against the Nittany Lions. The two teams have matched up four times in the Mike Rhoades era, with each team winning two games. In the last ten games, each team has come away the winner five times.
