Penn State is Feisty, and Foul, in Loss to Purdue

The Nittany Lions were game but rusty after a 17-day absence. And the fouls kept coming, including a technical for their coach.

Penn State's Myreon Jones made shots down the stretch, John Harrar delivered some needed interior presence and the whole team had an undeniable will Sunday against Purdue.

But the same issues (shooting lapses, lack of interior scoring and defense and too many fouls) emerged in the Lions' first game of 2021. Purdue defeated Penn State 80-72 at Mackey Arena, extending a decade-long stretch of series dominance. The Boilermakers (10-5) have won 18 of the last 21 games between the two teams, including 10 of 11 at home.

Penn State (3-5) made Purdue work for the win late, cutting a 16-point deficit to four with 17 seconds left. The Lions certainly showed grit and fight but clearly know that won't be enough in the Big Ten.

Penn State is 0-5 in the conference and began a four-game week that affords little respite. The Lions play another road game Tuesday at Illinois, to which it lost by 17 in January, then return home for games Thursday and Saturday against Rutgers and Northwestern.

How it happened

Playing its first game since Dec. 30, primarily because of a COVID-19 pause on Jan. 6, Penn State looked understandably shaky from the outset. One good sign: The team wasn't missing any of its regular players, including those in the starting lineup.

Once getting their step, the Lions went on a 9-2 run midway through the first half to take their first lead at 23-22. But interim coach Jim Ferry thought a turning point occurred at half's end.

Mason Gillis made a 3-pointer with 1 second on the clock, giving Purdue a 33-32 lead at the break. Gillis then opened the second half with a 3-pointer, despite a pretty good Penn State defensive series, to launch the Boilermakers' run. Purdue built a 16-point lead midway through the second half and appeared poised to run away with the game.

"At the start of the second half it looked like we were in quicksand a little bit," Ferry said. "But I give our guys great credit. They're going to keep fighting and fighting and fighting all the way to the end to give ourselves a chance to win.

"Our margin of error is so small defensively. I thought we put them on the foul line too much, and I thought they set the tone on the glass early which hurt us. But I think for all of us, it felt great to be back on the court playing for each other."

High points

Despite the 16-point deficit, Penn State still managed to make Purdue sweat out the final few minutes. Jones (game-high 23 points) made four second-half 3-pointers to ignite the charge. And Harrar's double-double (14 points, 14 rebounds) gave the Lions a sorely needed interior presence.

"We played extremely hard," Ferry said. "When we played together, we looked like a team that was connected. John Harrar was phenomenal. His will to compete and his will to win is stuff we've got to building on."

The issues

The last time it beat Purdue (in 2020), Penn State shot 53.8 percent from 3-point range. The Lions didn't crack half that (25.6 percent) this time. And aside from Jones (5-13), Penn State went 5-for-26 from the arc.

Fouls also continue to beset Penn State. Opponents entered the game averaging 24.5 free-throw attempts per game against the Lions, by far the most in the Big Ten. In fact, Penn State was the only Big Ten allowing more than 20 foul shots per game entering Sunday.

Then, Penn State was called for 11 more fouls than Purdue (27-16), and the Boilermakers went 24-for-33 from the line. Purdue made 11 more free throws than Penn State attempted, even though it shot just 72.7 percent from the line.

Through nine games, Penn State has been called for 170 personal fouls; its opponents 129. Which leads to...

Explaining the technical

Three minutes into the second half, Ferry was called for a technical foul while one of his own players, Izaiah Brockington, was shooting free throws. Brandon Newman's two foul shots gave Purdue a 12-point lead.

"I was just fighting for our guys," Ferry said. "I thought some of the calls were a little uneven or inconsistent, whatever you want to call it. I've been coaching for a long time. I wasn't ranting and raving and I wasn't cursing. I thought there was a little sensitivity on that, but I'll deal with that separately."

What's next

Penn State got on a bus to Champaign, Ill., where it will meet the Illini at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. Big Ten Network will televise.

Get the latest Penn State news by joining the community. Click "Follow" at the top right of our AllPennState page. Mobile users click the notification bell. And please follow AllPennState on Twitter @MarkWogenrich.