Penn State Upsets Ohio State 71-68, Moves on to Play Purdue in Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — After falling behind by as many as 13 points against Ohio State, Penn State rallied to find a 71-68 victory Thursday night inside Gaibridge Fieldhouse during the second round of the Big Ten Tournament.
The Nittany Lions were fueled by its bench, which scored 32 points in the win, to send the team to its first Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals appearance since 2018. The Buckeyes, on the other hand, have now lost four of their last five games.
Penn State and coach Micah Shrewsberry, a former Purdue assistant, will face off against Matt Painter and the Boilermakers on Friday.
The Buckeyes were red hot from the 3-point line in the first half, knocking down five of its nine shots from beyond the arc. E.J. Liddell was 2-3 from deep before the break, forcing the Nittany Lions to call a timeout after the Buckeyes went on an 8-0 run to take a 15-4 lead with 11:29 left before halftime.
The junior forward led all scorers with 12 points as Ohio State went into the locker room with a 33-24 lead at halftime. Penn State's bench scored 14 points in the period, including nine from senior guard Sam Sessoms.
The Nittany Lions struggled from the field in the first half, scoring just 32% of their shots while hitting on just three of their 12 attempts from the 3-point line.
But even after Ohio State led by as many 11 points in the second half, Penn State kept the game close by going on a 10-2 scoring run to bring the game to within one possession.
The Buckeyes didn't trail the Nittany Lions until under six minutes left to play as junior forward Seth Lundy drilled a 3-pointer to cap off a 14-3 run, giving Penn State a 56-54 lead.
The team held on the rest of the way, with four players ending the game in double figures to overcome Liddell's game-high 25 points. Sessoms led Penn State with 18 points, while senior guard Jalen Pickett scored 16 alongside eight rebounds and five assists.
Seniors Myles Dread and John Harrar each added 12 points in the victory. Freshman guard Malaki Branham also scored 12 points for the Buckeyes.
Penn State will tip off against Purdue at approximately 9 p.m. ET on Friday. In the first meeting between the two teams back on Jan. 8, the Boilermakers earned a 74-67 road win at the Bryce Jordan Center.
The winner will move on to the semifinals against either Wisconsin or Michigan State.
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.