Hoosiers Now

LIVE BLOG: Follow Indiana's Game at Palestra vs. Penn State in Real Time

Welcome to our live blog, straight from press row at the iconic Palestra in Philadelphia. Indiana takes on Penn State today in an important Big Ten game for both teams. We'll keep you updated with all the news and views in real time.

Tom Brew

Indiana junior forward Malik Reneau (knee) is out for Sunday's game against Penn State at the Palestra in Philadelphia. He injured it on Thursday in the home win vs. Rutgers
Indiana junior forward Malik Reneau (knee) is out for Sunday's game against Penn State at the Palestra in Philadelphia. He injured it on Thursday in the home win vs. Rutgers / Tom Brew/Indiana Hoosiers on SI
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PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — It's Sunday morning, so going to ''The Cathedral'' seems appropriate. That's the deal for Indiana, too, as they take on Penn State at the iconic Palestra in Philadelphia. The building, built in 1927, is one of the most important arenas in college basketball history,

Welcome to our live blog, straight from press row. Penn State likes playing a Big Ten game here while the students are away from State College for the holidays. This is this sixth time they've played an early January game here. They're 4-1 prior to today's Noon ET game.

Please follow along and we'll keep you updated in real time with all the news and views. We'll toss in some highlights and opinions as well. The latest items are all at the top. Enjoy the game!

2:08 p.m. ET — Indiana might have gotten a little break there. Shot clock was running down, and Mackenzie Mgbako forced a shot. He gets the foul call though on Nick Kern and will shoot two. Penn State calls timeout with 42.7 seconds to go. Mgbako, an 86 percent FT shooter, makes them both. ... Zach Hicks misses a three for Penn State and Myles Rice is fouled. He makes them both and it's 77-71 Indiana.

2:02 p.m. ET — What a horrible sequence there for Indiana. Trey Galloway dribbling too much, then throwing a bad pass pass that Oumar Ballo can't handle. Penn State hits a three, then Myles Rice is too slow dribbling the ball up he floor and gets called for a 10-second violation. It;'s 73-71 wiuth 42.7 seconds to go.

1:57 p.m. ET — We're at the under-4 timeout and Indiana leads 69-63. Going to be a wild finish. ... Huge steal by Trey Galloway, and he gets a timeout called on the floor. That was big with the lead at five. It's 73-68 Indiana with 2:05 to go.

1:52 .m.. ET — Penn State has missed five free throws this half. Clearly noticable when it;s a five-point game. Oumar Ballo fouled and he makes one of two to give Indiana a 69-63 lead. There's 4:12 to go.

1:46 p.m. — Oumar Ballo picks up his fourth foul at the 7:23 mark and has to go to the bench. Indiana's 16-point lead is now down to seven after Penn State's Freddie Dilione hits a three, their first one of game after 12 straight misses. IU turns it over, and then Nick Kern hits a three. It's a four-point game now.

1:40 p.m. ET — Indiana has trouble inbounding under Penn State's basket, so Luke Goode calls timeout. Wer'e at 8:12 to go, and the Hoosiers still lead 62-53.

1:35 p.m. ET — Oumar Ballo has 11 rebounds now, and he just passed 1,000 for his career. A milestone for sure. Not all at Indiana, of course. If you're curious, only four Hoosiers have had over 1,000 rebounds in their IU careers. That's Trayce Jackson-Davis (1,143), Alan Henderson (1,091),
Walt Bellamy (1,087) and Kent Benson (1,031).

1:30 p.m. ET — We are nearly three quarters of the way through this game and Penn State still has not made a three. They're 0-for-12. Great defensive job by Indiana.

1:28 p.m. ET — Interesting lineup for Indiana against Penn State's pressure. No Myles Rice on the floor, so it was Trey Galloway at the point with Anthony Leal, Bryson Tucker, Mackenzie Mgbako and Oumar Ballo. Handled it just fine. Timeout with 10:35 to go and Indiana ahead 58-45.

1:15 p.m. ET — That might have been the best start to a second half all season for Indiana. a 10-0 run, and outscored Penn State 15-4 in the first four minutes. Penn State finally scored a basket on a steal. They went 9:52 with a hoop. This team is No. 7 in the country in scoring!

1:09 p.m. ET — An amazing 8-0 run by Indiana to open the half, all from Mackenzie Mgbako. Big assist from Trey Galloway and huge steal from Myles Rice. Penn State coach Mike Rhoades with a quick timeout. It's 37-29 with 18:48 to go. Mgbako up to 13 points now. Really needed him today.

1:04 p.m. — Penn State is 0-for-8 from three, which is huge. They've abused Indiana from deep in years' past. Remember the 2023 loss in State College. The Lions won 85-66 and were an AMAZING 18-for-31 from three. Hoosiers not much better, just 2-for-11 so far.

12:58 p.m. ET — Oumar Ballo had a terrific first half for the Hoosiers. He leads all scorers with 14 points and also has a game-high nine rebounds. No one else on either team has more than six points or three rebounds.

HALFTIME: We go to the break tied at 29-29. Nice job on the defensive end by Indiana. Penn State didn't have a single field goal the final 6:29, just two free throws. It was Penn State's lowest half of the season. Previous low was 31 in the second half of their loss to Clemson.

12:44 p.m. ET — The long scoring drought ends for both teams with Indiana scoring on an Oumar Ballo dunk. Nice pass from Trey Galloway. Indiana leads 29-27 with 1:40 to go. First basket for either side since the 6:01 mark. ... Two quick fouls on Oumar Ballo. The charge was a joke.

12:35 p.m. ET — Luke Goode comes back into the game at the 5:28 mark. He has two fouls, and Mike Woodson doesn't usually do this in the first half. Let's hope he can make some shots before that third foul comes. We're tied at 27-27 with 5:18 to go. ... Still there at the under-4. Indiana missed four straight shots.

12:26 p.m. ET — Under 8-timeout now and Penn State has pulled ahead 22-20. Indiana doing a good job defending the three — Penn State is 0-for-4 — but they're letting them get to the rim too easily.

12:16 p.m. ET — We're at the under-12 timeout now and Indiana leads 17-14. Oumar Ballo leading the way with six points for the Hoosiers, all right at the rim. Penn State has height to guard him, but not the physicality. IU finds him on the block all day, and he'll be a problem. Good start for the Hoosiers.

12:08 p.m. — Back-to-back threes for Indiana from Mackenzie Mgbako and Luke Goode, and the Hoosiers pull ahead 13-10 with 14:51 to go in the first half. A good sign. Hoosiers hit 12 threes vs. Rutgers after missing 19 in a row the game before.

12:04 p.m. ET — Today's officials are DJ Carstensen, Randy Richardson and Owen Shortt.

12:01 p.m. — We've off and running at the Palestra. Penn State wins the tip and scores on a drive to the basket by Puff Johnson, who's been a pain for Indiana through the years. Oumar Ballo answers on the other end for Indiana, and we're tied at 2-2.

11:50 a.m. ET — Penn State's starters are Ace Baldwin, Freddie Dilione and Puff Johnson at guard, with Zach Hicks and Yonic Konan Niederhauser up front. Penn State is 5-2 vs. Indiana in the last seven.

11:45 a.m. ET — With Malik Reneau out with a knee injury, Oumar Ballo is back in the starting lieup. He'll join Mackenzie Mgbako and Luke Goode up front, with Myles Rice and Trey Galloway at guard.

Indiana's starting lineup for Penn State game.
Indiana's starting lineup for Penn State game. / Statcast

11:35 a.m. ET — Indiana opened as a 5.5-point underdog but the line continues to go up. It's 7.5 points now as we near tip off. I'll update this paragraph again at tip if it changes. Here was my point spread breakdown on both teams. CLICK HERE

11:30 a.m. ET — No Malik Reneau for Indiana today. He took a friendly fire shot to the right knee from Luke Goode in the first minute of IU's win over Rutgers on Thursday. He's still pretty sore, he told me, but he's also thinking it's nothing major and he's hoping to be back next week. Indiana plays against on Wednesday at home against USC.

11:25 a.m. ET — Coming to Philadelphia was an absolute must for me. Covered college basketball for over 40 years, and I've never been here. It's a legendary place, with the Philly Big 5 playing here all the time and it was a staple for early NCAA Tournament games before all the big arenas took over. Memories of Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indy for sure, but even smaller — and even more quaint. It's a bucket list trip for sure.

11: 15 a.m. ET — Ace Baldwin Jr. is one of my favorite players to watch in the Big Ten. He's a pure point who can score, distribuite and be a complete pain in the butt on defense. His matchup is one of the keys today. Here's a few more things to watch out for. CLICK HERE

11:05 a.m. — Today's game is being televised by the Big Ten Network. Brandon Gaudin and Robbie Hummel are on the call. Here's our link to ''How to Watch,'' with a great breakdown of the game by Jack Ankony.  CLICK HERE

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Tom Brew
TOM BREW

Tom Brew is an award-winning journalist who has worked at some of America's finest newspapers as a reporter and editor, including the Tampa Bay (Fla.) Times, the Indianapolis Star and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He has covered college sports in the digital platform for the past six years, including the last five years as publisher of HoosiersNow on the FanNation/Sports Illustrated network.

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