Penn State Holds Off Michigan State Rally For Upset Win in East Lansing

Penn State traveled to East Lansing early today as big underdogs.  No one expected them to win.  In fact, until today, Penn State was 0-16 all time in East Lansing.

When the horn sounded, the Nittany Lions of Penn State had posted a stunning 72-68 victory over the favored Michigan State Spartans.

The game was a game of streaks and constant momentum shifts.  Penn State took a five point lead early, leading 5-0 and 7-2. Michigan State came back to trail, 13-12.

Things looked dark for Penn State when Michigan State went on a 17-3 run to take a a 29-16 lead.  Penn State fought back with their own 9-0 run to close within striking distance at 29-25.

The two Big Ten foes traded baskets, and the Spartans moved out to a 37-30 advantage with two minutes left in the half. Seizing the moment, the Nittany Lions scored eight straight and went into the break leading, 38-37.

Penn State entered the game as 14-0 this season when leading at half-time. 

Something had to give, either the all-time losing streak in East Lansing or the unbeaten streak when leading after the first twenty minutes.

Early in the second half, Penn State and Michigan State traded buckets, leading to a 49-49 tie.

The Nittany Lions took charge of the moment once again, going on a 10-0 run, and eventually increased the lead to 12 points at 68-56 with less than seven minutes remaining.

Neither team scored until only four minutes were left in the game. The Spartans put together a closing 12-1 run to pull within one point with only 12 seconds to play in regulation.

Penn State went on to make three of their last four free throws. MSU missed a couple of jumpers, and Penn State held off the Michigan State rally to win, 72-68.

A couple of notes concerning the game:

1) Penn State's free throw shooting was atrocious.

The Nittany Lions went 8-17 from the line, under 50%.  They went 4-11 in the clutch, which really hurt them.  With the Lions up 68-56, their inability to make free throws was partially the reason that Michigan State climbed back into this game.

If Penn State had made good on a few more of the chances from the stripe during clutch-time, Michigan State wouldn't have been able to make a nearly successful comeback.

2) Penn State missed too many shots in the clutch.

Penn State's last made basket was with 6:51 left in the game, when Talor Battle made a layup to put PSU up, 68-56. They proceeded to go 0-4 from the field. The missed shots included two lay-ups, a two point jumper, and another a dailed three pointer.

Penn State was clearly rattled, and missing so many free throws and shots in the clutch is unacceptable.

If the Nittany Lions expect to make it to the NCAA tourney and advance, they have to learn how to make free throws, hit shots in the clutch, and finish games strong on both ends.

3) Penn State's three point shooting was deadly.

Battle and Pringle especially made this true.  They each had at least two three pointers that went in from nearly half court.  Battle went 6-12 from the arc, while Pringle went 2-4.  Cornley, Brooks, Woodward, and Morrissey combined to go two for four from three point range.

The Nittany Lions have a deadly three point game, and can shoot accurately from  anywhere on the court as they proved today. This team can make opponents really uncomfortable with the number of great shooters they have.

4) Penn State has a good team.

Penn State's resume includes wins over Purdue, who is now tied with MSU for first place in the Big 10, along with Michigan and Iowa. Perhaps more impressively, the Lions posted good road wins by defeating Georgia Tech and Indiana.

Penn St, on the year, lost by four at Wisconsin and at home to Michigan State by only five points. The other defeats this seasons were to a good Temple team by six, and the improving Rhode Island team by five.

The only non-competitive game was against Minnesota. Other than the one game with the Gophers, all of the losses have been close.

Penn State has shown, regardless of struggling to close out games and lacking five star talent at each position, they are a good team and can compete with anyone.

A few stats from the game:

Talor Battle led the Nittany Lions with 29 points.  He went 11-29 overall, (5-7 from two, 6-12 from three).  He also went 1-5 from the stripe.  He had two offensive rebounds and three defensive rebounds, along three assists.

Andrew Jones had 16 points, and went a perfect 4-4 from the field.  He also went 4-6 from the stripe.  He had two offensive rebounds and seven defensive rebounds.

Jamelle Cornley went 6-11 from the field, (1-1 from three, and 6-10 from two).  He went 3-5 from the stripe, and finished with 16 points.  He had three offensive rebounds and one defensive rebound, and also had one assist, one steal, and one block.

Stanley Pringle had 10 points, and he went 4-7 from the field, (2-3 from two and 2-4 from three).  He also had three defensive rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

Penn State's bench was led by Cammeron Woodyard, who had one three pointer and finished with three points.

Jeff Brooks went 1-2 and finished with two points.  He had one offensive rebound and two defensive rebounds, and also had three assists.

Kalin Lucas led the Spartans with 23 points.  Delvon Roe contributed eight points, Goran Suton had 11 on the day, Travis Walton had two, and Durrell Summers had nine.

The Spartans' bench was led by Chris Allen who had 11, and Marquise Gray who added four points in a losing cause.