Tag: NCAA Basketball Tournament

Big Ten Notebook: March madness continues as Purdue advances to Final Four

Purdue continues its roll in the NCAA Tournament.

For the first time since 1980, the Final Four will feature the Purdue Boilermakers. On Sunday, Purdue continued it’s March Madness run with a win 72-66 over Tennessee.

In a hard-fought battle, the Boilermakers were able to pull away in the second half due to the play of Zach Edey. The Toronto native scored 40 points and added 16 rebounds to his resume. However, he wasn’t the only Purdue player who had a big game; Fletcher Loyer chipped in 14 points.

As Purdue continued their impressive play, they dominated close to the basket. They outscored Tennessee in the paint 40-24 and were able to take advantage of offensive rebounds. That allowed Purdue to hold off a late Tennessee rally.

Additionally, Purdue showed that they had learned from their mistakes last year and relied on their experience.

🌵 SEE YOU IN PHOENIX FOR THE FINAL FOUR! pic.twitter.com/QtXwUSOtbE

— Purdue Men’s Basketball (@BoilerBall) March 31, 2024

 

“We had to take it,” Painter told ESPN when asked of the abuse that came last year. “Sometimes when you sit in it, and you’re honest with yourself, and you take it, some great things can happen.”

After an extended break, Purdue will be back in action on Saturday, April sixth. They will face NC State with a trip to the National Championship on the line.

Penn State’s season ends against Texas in the second round

Penn State bows out of the NCAA Basketball Tournament in loss to Texas

Regardless of what the results were going into the NCAA Tournament, this team electrified Penn State fans across the country.

An amazing early March winning streak was capped with a run to the Big Ten Tournament where they were a possession away from winning the championship game. That firmly put them into March Madness for the first time since 2011.

The team wasn’t just satisfied with being in the dance, they wanted to perform. And they did in the first round, dominating seventh-seeded Texas A&M for their first tournament win since 2011.

Unfortunately, the magical season came to an end on Saturday night as the Nittany Lions fell to the two-seeded Texas Longhorns, 71-66.

The matchup was going to be tough for the undersized Penn State squad. Texas has been playing its best basketball of the season down the stretch. They dominated the Big 12 Tournament and won the championship in a decisive manner.

After Penn State’s hot shooting night on Thursday, they started this game off cold. They were held to single digits for the first 12 minutes of the game. Their defense was the only reason why they were still able to keep it close early on. Despite only nine points 12 minutes in, the deficit was two points.

Texas was able to get some separation right before half. Penn State went into the locker room trailing 23-31.

There were moments in the second half where it looked like the Longhorns were going to run away with the game. Penn State wasn’t shooting well and they could not stop Texas big man Dylan Disu.

However, they kept hanging around and hanging around, continuing to compete on both ends of the floor.

With just over six minutes remaining, they cut it to 54-55 after back-to-back threes by senior [autotag]Myles Dread[/autotag].

One minute later, Penn State took their first lead since two minutes into the game after [autotag]Camren Wynter[/autotag] hit two free throws. In the next possession, [autotag]Seth Lundy[/autotag] stole the ball and scored a layup on the other end to put the Nittany Lions up 58-55.

Texas called a timeout to regroup. After the timeout, it was Disu time. He scored six straight points to put the Longhorns back up by three. They continued on a 10-0 run that put them up by seven points with under a minute remaining.

That was the nail in the coffin for Penn State.

The matchup was a difficult one going into the game. If they shot the ball like they did against Texas A&M, it could have been a winnable one. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

Penn State finished the game shooting 41.7% from the field and 28.6% from three-point range. [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag], who was sensational in the first round, was 5-14 from the field and 2-10 from three.

Wynter had a team high 16 points. Dread, the all-time Penn State leader in games played, scored 12 points in his final game. [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the last game of his sensational college career.

Disu had a game-high 28 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. Sir’Jabari Rice added 13 points off the bench and Marcus Carr joined them in double digits with 10.

It was a tough way for the season to end, knowing that if a couple shots that are normally made go into the hoop this game, Penn State could be playing in the Sweet Sixteen. But that’s the fickle game of basketball. Sometimes they fall, and sometimes they don’t.

Now, all eyes are going to be on what Penn State will look like next season. This roster was the most experienced in the country. Losing the multiple impact seniors will require a roster overhaul to bring players in from the transfer portal to pair with the talented underclassmen.

All of that is a moot point if Penn State can’t keep coach Micah Shrewsberry in State College. It should be a top priority of the athletic department to secure him as head coach for the long haul.

There is clearly an appetite for Penn State basketball and having an elite head coach is the start of building a consistent program. Hopefully, the athletic department sees it the same way.

Let’s celebrate this team, players and coaching staff for giving Penn State fans an amazing season!

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Twitter reacts to Penn State’s NCAA Basketball Tournament loss to Texas

Twitter shared in celebrating the unfortunate end to a wild March run by the Nittany Lions.

Cinderella came out from Disney in 1950, four years before Penn State would lose the NCAA Tournament national title game to La Salle. That movie lasted just one hour and 15 minutes. The 2023 version of the Nittany Lions saw a Cinderella run that started back in October.

They were never supposed to make it to the second round of the tournament and push the No. 2 seeded Texas Longhorns to the edge. Heck, they weren’t even supposed to be dancing but here they were.

Social media was well aware of the fact that this was a special season for Penn State and everyone did their part to embrace it while also reacting to the stages of the game.

5 key stats from Penn State’s NCAA Tournament loss to Texas

5 key stats from Penn State’s NCAA Basketball Tournament loss to Texas

Penn State’s March run came to an end on Saturday night. Despite putting up a gritty effort in the second half against the 2-seeded Texas Longhorns, Penn State was sent home from the NCAA Basketball Tournament with a 71-66 loss in the second round of the Midwest region.

Penn State was as hot as it could be shooting the ball in the first round but things were tougher to get going on offense against Texas in the second round. Penn State’s three-point shooting missed on too many opportunities and the Nittany Lions defense couldn’t figure out a surprise leading scorer for the Longhorns.

Here is a look at five key stats from the final box score.

Photos from Penn State’s NCAA Basketball Tournament second-round game

Check out the photo album from Penn State’s second-round matchup in the NCAA Basketball Tournament vs. Texas

Penn State’s men’s basketball season saw its season come to a close with a loss to the Texas Longhorns in the second round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on Saturday night. A good effort saw the Nittany Lions put up a good respectable fight against the region’s second-seed and a win was there for the taking in the final minutes of the game, but Texas proved to be the better team and was able to capitalize on miscues by Penn State to pave their own path to the Sweet 16.

It was a tough night offensively for the Nittany Lions with three-point shots simply not falling for the team most of the night, a stark contrast to their first-round victory over Texas A&M. But the Nittany Lions took fans on a fun ride over the past month and the future could remain bright for more postseason fun like this in years to come as the program heads into a critical offseason.

Here are some of the best photos from Penn State’s second-round matchup with Texas from Des Moines, Iowa on Saturday.

Could we get a Penn State vs. Pitt Sweet 16 matchup?

If Penn State beats Texas, how about this for a potential Sweet 16 matchup?

Penn State’s men’s basketball has not been to the Sweet 16 since 2001, but it is now one win away from advancing to the second week of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Penn State faces Big 12 champion and 2-seed Texas on Saturday evening with an opportunity to keep its momentum going into the next round. Winners of six of their last seven games against NCAA tournament teams, Penn State is playing with the kind of confidence you need to succeed this time of the year. The Nittany Lions will be an underdog against Texas, which is nothing new for the Nittany Lions, but their first-round victory over Texas A&M put many on notice of just how dangerous they can actually be.

And think about this. There is a possibility Penn State could play Pitt in the Sweet 16. Penn State already trashed the expectation for a Texas-Texas A&M matchup many were looking forward to when the bracket was initially released. Now, the possibility of an in-state battle between the Nittany Lions and Panthers is sitting right there.

Penn State has its own difficult task of knocking off the Longhorns, of course. Pittsburgh also has a tall order in front of it with a matchup against Big East tournament runner-up Xavier. The Musketeers had to turn on the jets in their first-round matchup with Kennesaw State though, so they could be vulnerable.

Pitt advanced to the first round with an opening-round game over Mississippi State that went down to the wire. Pitt then pulled away from Iowa State in the first round for a 59-41 victory over the Cyclones to reach the second round.

The rivalry between Penn State and Pitt is much more well-known on the football field, of course. Unfortunately, there are no signs of an eventual renewal of the long-standing in-state rivalry in football on the horizon, so a clash in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament may have to suffice for now. But in order to make that happen, Jalen Pickett, Andrew Funk and the rest of the Nittany Lions have work to do Saturday night against Texas.

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NCAA Tournament, Second Round: How to watch Penn State vs. Texas

How to watch Penn State vs. Texas in the NCAA basketball tournament on Saturday.

For the first time since 2001, the Penn State men’s basketball team is playing for a spot in the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

After a big win over Texas A&M in the first round on Thursday night, [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag], Andrew Funk and the Nittany Lions take on Big 12 Tournament champion Texas in the second round on Saturday evening in Des Moines, Iowa.

During Penn State’s hot streak, the team has won six of its last seven games against NCAA Tournament teams, including two wins over a Northwestern team that also advanced to the second round.

The Nittany Lions will face a Texas team that flirted with a No. 1 seed in the tournament with a 26-8 season capped by a 76-56 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks in the Big 12 championship game.

Penn State and Texas lit their opponents up from 3-point range in their first-round victories. Funk drained eight 3-pointers against Texas A&M, and Sir’Jabari Rice connecting on seven for the Longhorns against Colgate. We could be in for a fun battle with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line between Penn State and Texas.

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Here’s how to watch the second-round action on Saturday.

Twitter reacts to Penn State’s massive win against Texas A&M

Best Twitter reactions to Penn State’s lopsided NCAA Tournament win over the Aggies

Penn State came out firing on the Texas A&M Aggies and in the process locked down a win that had Twitter buzzing.

Between the biggest win in Penn State’s NCAA tournament history and [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag] breaking Twitter, it was a great night for Penn State. They are poised to play the two-seed Texas Longhorns but for now, they are celebrating this victory.

Coach Micah Shrewsberry coached a near-perfect game and arguably made himself a ton of money in the process.

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Twitter noticed that and much more during the game though.