As Jon Rothstein says, the epitome of brutality.
Penn State walked into Assembly Hall Saturday afternoon as one of the worst shooting teams in the Big Ten, coming in 12th at a 30 percent clip. Even without one of their best players in Kanye Clary, who missed his second consecutive game due to injury, the Nittany Lions shot 12-for-22 from downtown en route to their 85-71 win over the Indiana Hoosiers.
It’s no secret that Indiana has struggled in the Big Ten ever since the start of the new year. The Hoosiers have won three of their past eight games and have now slid into ninth place in the Big Ten standings. Any hopes of an NCAA Tournament berth has more than likely faded away after Indiana’s abysmal loss to the Nittany Lions.
“I just thought tonight, second half we were so flat coming out,” IU head coach Mike Woodson said in the postgame press conference. “It’s kind of disappointing because you play a good game against Iowa then you come back and basically lay an egg.”
Both squads dealt with their fair share of injuries coming into Saturday’s contest. Indiana played without sixth-year guard Xavier Johnson who sported a heavy brace on his left arm. His presence was certainly missed on the defensive side as the Nittany Lions guard play ripped Indiana apart. Ace Baldwin Jr blew up for 22 points along with eight assists while his right-hand man Jameel Brown put up 14 points coupled with four triples.
The Nittany Lions had not defeated Indiana on the road inside Assembly Hall since Feb. 12, 2014. Mark it back-to-back wins for Penn State, both being on the road. In the past three matchups between the two programs, it has been the blue and white coming out on top in each game.
“We had a four-point lead going into the half and we weren’t playing well at all,” Trey Galloway said in the postgame press conference, “came out the second half, it’s the same thing. Not playing hard enough or smart enough on the defensive end.”
Indiana looked poised for a big game after halftime as it led 41-37 while shooting 57 percent from the field. Kel’el Ware dominated the first half, scoring 17 points not missing a shot. The Nittany Lions punched the Hoosiers in the mouth to start the second half by going on a 24-10 run by the 11-minute mark. By that point, Indiana had started to fold completely.
Where does and where can Indiana go from this game? This game will go down as Indiana’s worst loss to a team over the top-100 in KenPom at home since the Hoosiers were smoked by Purdue Fort Wayne in 2018 92-72.
Once again, it will be back to the drawing board for Woodson and his Hoosiers as they take the road next on Tuesday out in Columbus, Ohio. Indiana and Ohio State match up on Peacock at 7 p.m. for their second game this season.
