Penn State Men’s Basketball vs. Northwestern Preview
Friday’s matchup between Penn State and Northwestern is not just your typical Big Ten battle.
The Nittany Lions will be recognizing seven players for senior night. This will feature a group of new players and staff who had to mesh at the beginning of the season.
The seven seniors are John Harrar, Greg Lee, Myles Dread, Jalen Pickett, Jaheam Cornwall, Jalanni White and Sam Sessoms.
Penn State’s last game resulted in a loss on the road at Maryland. They were in the game early on until the Terps surged ahead with a 13-point lead. Unable to mount a sufficient comeback to grab the lead back, they fell losing 67-61.
Maryland’s defense was locked down the entire game. They held Penn State’s better shooters, Seth Lundy and Dread, to only eight total shots. Lundy, one of Penn State’s top offensive facilitators, scored only six points.
Fifth-year senior Harrar continues to bring his best efforts with double-double 14 points and 13 rebounds. His development throughout the season has been significant, becoming a threat inside the paint for Penn State.
With two home games this weekend being against Northwestern and Nebraska, Penn State has a big opportunity to get back to a .500 record.
In its last game against the Wildcats, Penn State finished the final 10 minutes of the game on a 31-17 run. Overall it was efficient in the late game making 11 of its last 12 free throws and nine of its last 13 field goals.
Penn State won this game because of the rebounding battle. Northwestern doesn’t get many offensive rebounds. To win on Friday, Penn State will yet again have to dominate the boards and limit extra opportunities.
Scouting Northwestern
The scoring duo of Pete Nance and Boo Buie have accelerated the Wildcats all season. Both averaged 15 points a game and combined for 10, 20+ point performances this season.
Nance is one of the few stretch forwards in the league, standing at 6’10 he can knock down the three shooting 44% on the season. In Northwestern’s recent win over Nebraska, he made career-high four three-pointers finishing with 20 points.
Its next, go-to scorer is Chase Audige, an athletic guard who has had 20 points two times this season. Ty Berry has been coming off the bench providing a spark with 10 points in its last game against Nebraska. Berry went 3/6 from beyond the arc last time vs Penn State.
Despite being ranked in the top five in scoring in the Big Ten, they have struggled offensively averaging 65.2 points a game in their last five, eight below their season average.
Prediction
Penn State’s only road win this season was at Northwestern back on Jan. 5. Being 9-4 at home, the Nittany Lions will be prepared to look for a bounce-back opportunity after the tough loss to Maryland.
Considering Penn State’s struggles on the road, they should be able to take care of business against a team they beat earlier this season. Motivation will be even higher with it being a special night inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
Penn State 72, Northwestern 65
Austin Groft is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email atg5271@psu.edu.
