Tag: Penn State Men’s Basketball

Penn State seniors surge past Maryland in regular-season finale (photos)

Check out the best photos from Penn State basketball’s regular-season finale and senior night victory over Maryland.

Penn State honored its seniors on the basketball court on Sunday night and the seniors led the way to a home win against Maryland with a massive second-half effort. Penn State led Maryland by four points at halftime but pulled away in the second half as the regular season came to a close with a 49-37 scoring advantage in the second half of an 85-69 victory over the Terrapins.

Penn State’s seniors combined for 65 points in the win powered by a double-double from [autotag]Qudus Wahab[/autotag] (19 points, 15 rebounds) and [autotag]Ace Baldwin Jr.[/autotag] (17 points, 11 assists). [autotag]RayQuawndis Mitchell[/autotag] (14 points), [autotag]Puff Johnson[/autotag] (13 points), and [autotag]Nick Kern Jr.[/autotag] (10 points) all scored in double figures for the Nittany Lions.

This marked the seventh straight home win for Penn State over Maryland. Now both teams will be heading off to the Big Ten men’s basketball tournament this week in Minnesota, with each being paired up in a first-round matchup.

Next up for Penn State is a first-round matchup in the Big Ten conference tournament against Michigan on Wednesday, March 13. A win will set up a second-round matchup with Indiana. Maryland will face Rutgers in the first round with the winner set to face Wisconsin in the second round.

Here are some of the best photos from the regular-season finale against Maryland.

Penn State basketball runs out of steam in latest road loss at Minnesota

Penn State led Minnesota by 12 at halftime but returned home with another frustrating road loss.

It was quite the tale of two halves for Penn State men’s basketball on Saturday afternoon at Minnesota. After leading the Gophers by 12 points at halftime, Penn State was outscored 45-28 in the second half and returned home with a tough 75-70 loss to close out the road schedule for the regular season.

Despite getting a career-best 19 points from [autotag]Puff Johson[/autotag] and a 17-point effort from [autotag]Ace Baldwin Jr.[/autotag] but the Gophers went on a sizzling 21-5 run to take a lead and begin setting the pace for the remainder of the season.

Penn State losing on the road in a key game coming down the final stretch fell in sync with the theme of the season for the Nittany Lions on the road. Penn State won just two road games all season this. They also dropped both regular season meetings with Minnesota.

Penn State will have one final game to play before heading off to the Big Ten men’s basketball tournament as they look to try and stay out of the bottom four seeds in the Big Ten standings. Penn State

Penn State will host Maryland for the final game of the regular season on March 10 at 7:30 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.

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Former Penn State guard Andrew Funk signs with Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls have rounded out part of their roster for the second-half of the season with a Nittany Lion.

The Chicago Bulls are looking to add a shooter to the roster, and they may have found one in the form of a former Penn State Nittany Lion. [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag], who spent one season with the Nittany Lions last year out of the transfer portal, has signed a two-way contract with the Bulls.

Each NBA team is allowed to have three players signed to a two-way contract. The Bulls had a spot open up after upgrading a two-way contract for Onuralp Bitim to a regular NBA contract.

Funk transferred to Penn State from Bucknell before the 2022-23 college basketball season, and he immediately became a three-point shooting force for the Nittany Lions. The former Patriot League standout helped Penn State reach the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2011. Funk was on fire in Penn State’s first-round win over Texas A&M, Penn State’s first tournament win since 2001.

Funk signed with the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets as an undrafted free agent following the 2023 NBA draft. He played with the summer league team for the Nuggets and signed with the team in July, but he was waived by the Nuggets in October. Later that month he joined the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League.

Funk is one of three Penn State players from last season’s roster currently on an NBA roster. Seth Lundy is with the Atlanta Hawks and Jalen Pickett is with the Nuggets. Both were second-round draft picks of their respective teams in the 2023 NBA draft. Another former Penn State player, Lamar Stevens, is in his third season in the NBA. Stevens is a member of the Memphis Grizzlies

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Social media basks in Penn State basketball victory, roasts Indiana

Penn State beating Indiana in basketball once again set Indiana social media on fire.

It used to be that Penn State basketball beating Indiana was a rarity. But after a victory in the Bryce Jordan Center on Saturday afternoon, the Nittany Lions completed a regular-season sweep and extended its winning streak over the Hoosiers to four. And those observing and reacting on social media sure took notice of the latest developments with these two programs.

Penn State continued to trend up in the Big Ten standings while the Hoosiers slipped into the bottom four of the Big Ten standings. In what has been an up-and-down season for the Nittany Lions, Penn State could be building some momentum at the right time. Two wins in a row at home this week have led some Penn State fans to beaming with pride and raising expectations after going through a tough stretch recently.

Here is a look at some of the social media reactions to Penn State basketball’s victory over the Hoosiers.

Best photos as Penn State basketball tops Indiana in the Bryce Jordan Center

Take a look at some of the best photos as Penn State completed a regular-season sweep of Indiana.

Penn State continued to frustrate Indiana on the basketball court on Saturday with an 83-74 victory in the Bryce Jordan Center. The win was a pivotal one for the Nittany Lions as they continue to fight to improve their seeding situation in the upcoming Big Ten men’s basketball tournament. The win was fueled by a balanced scoring effort from the entire starting lineup and led by Ace Baldwin Jr.’s 23 points and solid defensive efforts.

Penn State has now won four consecutive games against the Hoosiers, which is pretty remarkable given the two histories between the two programs overall and in head-to-head meetings over the years. After taking an earlier road game in Bloomington, Penn State has its first sweep of the Hoosier sin a regular season since 2009.

Here are some of the best photos from Saturday’s latest win against the Hoosiers.

Hoosier daddy? Penn State continues winning ways against Indiana

Penn State basketball picked up another big home win with a victory over Indiana.

Maybe Penn State men’s basketball has one more run in them right before the end of the regular season. Days after pulling an upset of Illinois in Rec Hall, Penn State continued their winning ways at home on Saturday afternoon with an 83-74 victory over Indiana in the Bryce Jordan Center. [autotag]Ace Baldwin Jr.[/autotag] led the way with 23 points and 9 assists with four rebounds and four steals.

The two teams played a back-and-forth first half for the most part, but the Nittany Lions went on a timely 8-1 run to close out the first half and managed to keep Indiana at bay for the remainder of the afternoon. The visiting Hoosiers did pull to within two points in the second half but a [autotag]Zach Hicks[/autotag] three-pointer and a basket by [autotag]Puff Johnson[/autotag] gave Penn State some breathing room and allowed them to put the game in a comfortable spot the rest of the way.

Penn State got a balanced offensive outing from its starting lineup with each starter scoring in double figures. [autotag]Qudus Wahab[/autotag] had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Penn State basketball has now found the upper hand against Indiana on the basketball court it would seem. Penn State has won four in a row and five of the past six meetings with the Hoosiers, including a Big Ten tournament matchup last season.

This marks the first time since 2009 that Penn State completed a regular season sweep of Indiana. It also helped move Penn State up into 8th place in the updated Big Ten standings. Along with Iowa losing to Illinois on Saturday, the Nittany Lions moved up a spot ahead of the Hawkeyes.

And that sets up Penn State’s next game, which will carry a little more weight in the Big Ten tournament seeding outlook down the final stretch. Penn State visits Iowa on Tuesday evening.

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Penn State’s upset of Illinois moves Nittany Lions up in Big Ten basketball tournament seeding

Here is what Penn State’s upset of Illinois means for the updated Big Ten tournament seeding.

We are at the point in the college basketball regular season where seeding in the NCAA tournament is beginning to come into much more focus, but first comes the conference tournaments. Penn State’s chances of playing in the NCAA tournament are still far-fetched at this late stage, but Penn State did manage to do themselves some real good in the Big Ten tournament picture with their comeback victory over the Illini on Wednesday.

Penn State came into the home game against Illinois in one of the Big Ten’s bottom four seeds, which would have them playing on the first day of the Big Ten men’s basketball tournament. But one win against Illinois jumped Penn State out of the bottom four and up two pivotal spots in the overall Big Ten seeding.

If the season were to end today, Penn State would be the no. 9 seed in the Big Ten tournament and would play Iowa in the second round of the conference tournament. The winner of that matchup would then go on to face Purdue in the quarterfinals. Penn State won the first regular season meeting between the two schools earlier in February. Penn State visits Iowa next week in a game that could be important for Big Ten tournament seeding purposes.

Iowa has the unenviable task of visiting Illinois on Saturday. Illinois picking up a rebound win against the Hawkeyes would continue to help Penn State in the standings. Iowa also has to play Illinois twice in their final four games. Iowa also plays a game at Northwestern, one of the top four seeds in the Big Ten standings at the moment.

Penn State still has work to do, of course. The Nittany Lions have to take care of their own business to avoid falling back into the bottom four seeds, which can happen quickly. Next up for Penn State is a home game against Indiana this Saturday. A home win over the Hoosiers paired with an Iowa loss to Illinois would move Penn State up into the no. 8 seed and make it a little more difficult to slip back into the bottom four seeds. The previously mentioned road game at Iowa will still be a concern, and Penn State has to overcome its road demons with a trip to Minnesota. Penn State dropped the previous meeting with the Gophers, who are currently the no. 7 seed in the Big Ten standings.

Penn State also closes out the regular season at home against Maryland. The Terrapins are currently in the bottom four of the Big Ten standings. That regular season finale could potentially be a game to determine which team plays in the first round of the conference tournament.

The top four seeds in the Big Ten tournament receive a double-bye and do not have to play a game until the quarterfinals. The no. 5 through no. 10 seeds all get a first-round bye. The bottom four seeds are paired against each other on the first day of the tournament.

You can see the updated Big Ten men’s basketball tournament seeding right here.

This year’s Big Ten basketball tournament will take place from March 13 through March 17 in the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN.

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What a rush! Best photos from Penn State basketball’s upset of Illinois

Penn State basketball gave fans a memorable experience in Rec Hall. Here are some of the best photos from the night.

Penn State basketball has been enjoying quite the up-and-down regular season but the emotional highs have been plentiful when playing at home and even more so in historic venues. Earlier this season Penn State came away with a win in The Palestra in Philadelphia, but on Wednesday it played in a venue molded in the style of The Palestra that it once called home, Rec Hall. And the Rec Hall setting was perfect for what transpired Wednesday evening.

Penn State took on no. 12 Illinois with the Illini trying to keep pace and setup a possible opportunity to grab the top seed in the Big Ten basketball tournament. And for a while in the second half, it appeared Illinois was going to leave Rec Hall with an expected win, but the Nittany Lions turned on the defensive pressure to a level Illinois was not equipped to handle and Penn State stormed back in the final minutes for a stunner. Zach Hicks drained three free throws in the final seconds to complete a memorable comeback for the Nittany Lions and the defense prevented a good look for a last-second basket by the Illini, leading to a good old-fashioned court storming by the whiteout crowd in Rec Hall.

Here are some of the best photos from a memorable evening in Rec Hall.

Social media reacts to Penn State basketball’s upset of No. 12 Illinois

Penn State basketball’s upset of Illinois was trending on social media!

Penn State shocked many in the college basketball world with its effort on Wednesday night against no. 12 Illinois. A frenzied Rec Hall crowd was on hand to witness Penn State dictate the tempo for much of the evening and come from behind by as many as 14 points to spring an upset of the heavily favored Illini, leading to a court storming of the hallowed grounds of Rec Hall.

There is just something about these old venues that brings out the best in Penn State with wins this season in Rec Hall and The Palestra in Philadelphia, both in front of whiteout crowds hoping for a turning of the corner for the program moving forward.

Penn State’s win on Wednesday night was a big one as it elevated Penn State out of the bottom four seeds in the Big Ten basketball tournament seeding for the moment. Could this be a win that springs Penn State on the right momentum heading into the Big Ten men’s basketball tournament in a couple of weeks? We’ll see if the momentum can carry over, but this was an important one for Mike Rhoades and his crew.

Here is a look at some of the best reactions found on social media during and after Penn State’s big win in Rec Hall.

Penn State stuns No. 12 Illinois with Zach Hicks free throws in final seconds

Penn State fans storm the court of Rec Hall after a wild comeback victory over No. 12 Illinois!

Penn State was looking to create a little magic in their old stomping grounds of Rec Hall on Wednesday night, and Zach Hicks and Nick Kern Jr. rose to the occasion. Kern Jr. scored a career-best 22 points but it was three free throws by Hicks in the final seconds that delivered a memorable and much-needed victory for Penn State against No. 12 Illinois. Hicks drained all three free throws after being fouled to give Penn State a wild 90-98 victory over the Illini.

Penn State held a lead for most of the first half but trailed Illinois by seven at halftime and trailed by seven with a little over a minute to play in the game before going on a run in the final minute.

After draining the go-ahead free throw, Penn State just needed one last defensive stop, and they got it. And with that, a court storming in Rec Hall for the whiteout crowd.

Illinois got a big game from Terrence Shannon Jr. with a 35-point effort, but the Illini struggled to keep up the pace with Penn State from the start and could not hold off the pressure in the closing moments.

The win helps Penn State move out of the bottom four of the Big Ten standings, at least for now. Penn State moved up two spots in the Big Ten standings from no. 11 to no. 9 in the Big Ten tournament picture.

Next up for the Nittany Lions will be a home game against Indiana on Saturday. Penn State upset the Hoosiers in the first meeting of the regular season in Bloomington two weeks ago.

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