NIT 2018: Box Score, Stats, Highlights from Penn State vs. Utah Championship

Penn State captured its second NIT title in the last decade Thursday night, as it defeated Utah 82-66 at Madison Square Garden.

The victory capped an incredible March for the Nittany Lions, who won two games at the Big Ten tournament and then went on the road to beat Notre Dame and Marquette to advance to New York City.

Pat Chambers' team became the second Big Ten program in the last five years to win the title, with Minnesota being the other in 2014.

The Nittany Lions finished 26-13, while Utah ended its campaign with a 23-12 mark that included wins over Arizona State and Missouri.

Box Score

Quarter-by-Quarter Score

1st Quarter: Penn State 21, Utah 20 

2nd Quarter: Penn State 39, Utah 34

3rd Quarter: Penn State 63, Utah 48

Final: Penn State 82, Utah 66

Penn State

Lamar Stevens: 28 points

Josh Reaves: 18 points

Tony Carr: 15 points

Shep Garner: 8 points

John Harrar: 7 points

Julian Moore: 6 points

Utah

Sedrick Barefield: 22 points

Justin Bibbins: 15 points

Tyler Rawson: 11 points

Jayce Johnson: 8 points

Donnie Tillman: 6 points

David Collette: 4 points

Stats and Highlights

Penn State's run to the NIT began with a surge at Madison Square Garden in the first week of March, as it knocked off Northwestern and Ohio State to reach the Big Ten tournament semifinals. 

The Nittany Lions benefited from that momentum in victories over Temple, Notre Dame, Marquette and Mississippi State to get to the championship.

Chambers hailed the Nittany Lions' form during that time after the NIT title game, per Big Ten Network's official Twitter account:

"We were the best team by the end of the year," Chambers said. "We were the best team that we could be and that's all I can ask for." 

Sophomore forward Lamar Stevens was the star of the NIT run, as he produced 96 points in five games, including 28 in Thursday's win over Utah.

The 45 points scored by Stevens at Madison Square Garden separated him from every player on the court, and it earned him the NIT Most Valuable Player award, as Penn State's official team Twitter account noted:

With plenty of underclassmen set to return next season, the Nittany Lions appear ready to take the next step and make the NCAA men's basketball tournament, a goal that is easier to achieve with Tony Carr in the lineup, as CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein pointed out:

Carr, a sophomore guard, could declare for the NBA Draft following a season in which he averaged 19.6 points, five rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.

One player who definitely won't be back next season for Penn State is Shep Garner, who helped build the program during his four seasons.

Although he only scored eight points Thursday, Garner passed Shawn Respert for the most three-pointers by a Big Ten player in a single season, per BTN Stats Guys on Twitter:

Sedrick Barefield and Justin Bibbins were the top performers for Larry Krystkowiak's Utes, but they didn't have enough to beat the Nittany Lions.

Bibbins noted Penn State's home-court advantage and shot-making ability as two of the differences in Thursday's contest, per KSL.com's Josh Furlong:

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.