Penn State Basketball Remains Undefeated at Home With Close Win Over Northwestern

The Nittany Lions improved to 9-0 at home after defeating the Northwestern Wildcats (10-4,1-2) 84-80.

Zach Hicks led PSU with 20 points (3-of-6 from 3). Three other Nittany Lions scored in double figures with Ace Baldwin Jr. amassing 17 points, seven assists and five steals.

The Wildcats’ leading scorer was Brooks Barnhizer with 20 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Nick Martinelli contributed 18 points.

Overall, Penn State shot 50 percent from the field and 27 percent from 3. Northwestern went 46 percent from the field and connected on 27 percent of its 3s. The Wildcats, who are known for their ball security, were forced into 16 turnovers, which PSU turned into 18 points.

Puff Johnson secured an offensive rebound and took a bump on a fall-away two to give Penn State its first score. He would convert on the free throw for an early PSU 3-0 lead. 

Northwestern was held scoreless for the opening three-and-a-half minutes as Freddie Dilione got a steal and went coast to coast for a dunk to give Penn State an 8-0 lead. 

At the 16:36 mark, Martinelli found himself open on a roll and connected on a floater to give the Wildcats its first made shot. 

Two free throws by Baldwin ended a four-minute scoring drought to give Penn State a 12-6 lead, but Northwestern responded with an 8-0 run. 

Northwestern grew its lead to five (21-16) by the under-eight media timeout, which was triggered by a Johnson charging foul for PSU’s ninth turnover of the half. However, D’Marco Dunn scored eight of the Nittany Lions’ 16 points during a 16-5 run to give Penn State a 32-26 lead.

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Penn State ended the half with a 21-13 scoring advantage, going 8-for-10 over the last 10 minutes of the half. Dilione had the highlight of the half with a poster dunk in transition, for which he received a technical foul for taunting afterward.

The second half started with a made hook shot by Niederhauser. He had an and-one opportunity but missed the subsequent free throw. That miss was made up for by Johnson who made six free throws on his way to scoring eight of Penn State’s first 1o points of the second.

The Nittany Lions frequented the free throw line all game, attempting 28 of their 45 free throws in the second. Even with those free point opportunities, the game remained close as there were 14 lead changes and 11 ties.

Penn State’s defense came through late as Konan Niederhauser (three blocks) anchored the paint on multiple possessions, leading to scores by Baldwin and Hicks to give PSU an 80-75 lead with 3:05 left.

Martinelli made two late free throws to make it a two-point game (82-80), and Baldwin misfired a three, giving the Wildcats an opportunity to tie the game.

After a missed three by Ty Berry, a goal tend call was whistled on a Jalen Leach putback layup. The call was reversed, giving Northwestern minimal time to make something happen. Baldwin would go on to ice the game at the free throw line, keeping Penn State’s unbeaten record at home alive.

Penn State’s next game will be at the Palestra against Indiana on Sunday. Tipoff will be at noon.