Penn State Reaches Big Ten Semis for First Time Since 2018
Penn State had no business taking Northwestern to overtime in Friday's Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. Then again, the Wildcats had no business being there, either.
Yet the Lions, for whom "Gritty, not pretty" has become season-long meme, somehow emerged from the muck for a 67-65 win over second-seeded Northwestern at the United Center in Chicago. And Penn State coach Micah Shrewsberry embraced that muck as the foundation of his team's audacious March run.
"Tonight was the definition of gritty, not pretty," Shrewsberry said.
Gassed, sloppy and yet ever stalwart, the Lions (21-12) won their second consecutive overtime game against the Wildcats in nine days. They brushed aside all their faults to reach the Big Ten semifinals for the first time since 2018. Penn State will face third-seeded Indiana at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday.
Yet it's perfectly fair to ask, how? Penn State committed a season-high 15 turnovers, gave up 38 points off turnovers and second chances, shot 25 percent from 3-point range in the second half, missed 11 foul shots and survived these hair-raising final seconds of overtime.
The answer: a commitment to its defense, timely 3s, Seth Lundy and critical bench minutes from guard Kanye Clary. With each game in this wild March run (Penn State has won seven of eight), the team is proving it possesses the chops, resilience and simple doggedness to be a threat in the NCAA Tournament.
Where the Nittany Lions will play for the first time since 2011.
"We don't want this thing to end," Shrewsberry said. "We never want this thing to end. We want to play as long as possible."
So enough about the struggles. Penn State delivered its most pivotal moment with 46 seconds left in overtime, when Lundy pulled up for his eighth 3-pointer of the game. Lundy's never not feeling it from long range, but this time Shrewsberry was waving him to pass to Jalen Pickett.
"I was," Shrewsberry said. "It was a great audible on his part, though."
Yet Lundy took and made the 3-pointer, giving the Lions a 64-62 lead and proving his flex. Even when Lundy is off (remember the 0-for-11 game against Rutgers?), his confidence doesn't waver. It didn't late in the second half, when Lundy pulled up for a critical long-range 3-pointer that gave the Lions a 1-point lead.
And it most certainly didn't in that moment.
"It's nothing new for me," said Lundy, who led Penn State with 16 points. "I felt like I've doing it my whole career. It was a great opportunity. I felt like I was trying to front him anyway and I didn't want to have a turnover. I felt like getting up a shot was better than nothing. I just ISO'd him, and that was the outcome."
Meanwhile, the Lions also got a gritty performance from guard Kanye Clary, who scored 11 points and provided a change-up (or speed-up) to Pickett.
Shrewsberry acknowledged that Pickett (15 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists) wasn't in peak form. The All-American point guard committed five turnovers (his most since January) and went a meager 4-for-9 from the foul line.
Meanwhile, Clary kickstarted the Lions with his burst and energy.
"We needed a little bit of a spark; I didn't think we had it early," Shrewsberry said. "... He's such a change-of-pace guard, especially to Pickett. It's like the tortoise and the hare out there.
"He's so fast. He can get to the rim. Sometimes he doesn't always make the right play, but his heart is in the right place. So he's growing and getting better. We need him. He was big-time for us."
Defensively, Penn State often flummoxed Northwestern, which made just 21 of 66 field-goal attempts and shot 25 percent (6 of 24) from 3-point range. A marginally better shooting night would have sent Northwestern comfortably to the semis.
Northwestern coach Chris Collins attributed that in part to the Lions' defensive tenacity.
"Give Penn State credit," Collins said. "I thought they did some things well, but I also thought we had some looks that we just didn't knock down."
The nation gets a rare look at Penn State on Saturday, as the Big Ten semifinals will be broadcast on CBS. This could serve as the introductory moment for a self-assured team that has united around its coach at just the right time.
A month ago Saturday, Penn State fell to 5-9 in the Big Ten after losing its fourth straight game, to Maryland. But Shrewsberry has pointed to that moment as the turning point for his team.
Since then, Penn State is 7-1 with a Big Ten semifinal date pending.
"It was hard, it was challenging, but none of those guys ever lost faith," Shrewsberry said. "They believed. They believed in each other, and they believed in what we could do as a team.
"Maybe it took a little bit longer than we wanted to, but we always said we want to play our best basketball in March, and I think we're doing that right now."
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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.
