Penn State Grinds to a Needed Big Ten Win Over Maryland
Penn State added incrementally to its NCAA tournament resume Friday, grinding out a 55-50 win over Maryland that provided a needed boost, if not a memorable performance.
The Lions (7-8) dragged Tuesday's shaky second-half shooting performance at Wisconsin into the first half against Maryland, which staked itself a nine-point lead with a 12-0 run. But the Lions clawed back, tying the game at halftime and gradually putting some distance between themselves and the Terps behind Izaiah Brockington, John Harrar and the targeted offense of Jamari Wheeler.
The win, Penn State's fifth straight at home over Maryland, delivered some more worthy data for the Lions in the NCAA's NET rankings. Penn State, which entered the game at No. 33, improved its record in Quad 2 games to 2-1. Maryland was 38th in the NET.
"I think you saw our guys really come together," Penn State interim head coach Jim Ferry said. "That was just a great team win when things just weren't going well. That's a great thing to happen for us as we're heading into the back end of conference play."
It was a rough night for Penn State offensively. Two of the team's leading scorers, Myreon Jones and Seth Lundy, combined for four points on 2-for-17 shooting. The duo entered the game averaging a combined 28 points.
Penn State then nearly handed the game back to Maryland, turning over the ball on five late possessions, including once via an offensive foul. But Maryland couldn't capitalize on the juicy opportunities, missing nine consecutive shots over the last 7 minutes of the second half.
Maryland (10-9) further helped Penn State tremendously by turning over the ball a season-high 16 times. The Lions scored 12 points via turnovers. Penn State also outrebounded Maryland 25-11 in the second half, getting 16 of those boards defensively to prevent the Terps from second-chance baskets.
"We got our edge back, our defensive edge," said John Harrar, who had 9 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. "It's just a want-to. Defense and rebounding are want-tos. The offense will come naturally. With defense and rebounding, you've got to want to do it. It's a mindset."
That's what impressed Ferry most. His team was sloppy and looked fatigued during warmups but ultimately played "good enough."
For Wheeler, the game marked a bit of an offensive surge. Wheeler made the game's biggest, and most casual, shot in a second-half run that gave the Lions the lead for good.
With the shot clock flipping to 0, Wheeler squared and deliberated before making a 3-pointer from the left corner to give the Lions a 39-36 lead. Wheeler said he has been drilling deliberate shots in practice instead of just "firing and letting it go."
Wheeler scored 11 points, delivering a vital measure of offense on a night when neither team shot well. Since his 18-point performance in the opener against VMI, Wheeler had not made more than two field goals in a game. Against Maryland, Wheeler hit three 3-pointers.
"My hard work is going to pay off," he said.
Further, Wheeler made two key foul shots with 23.3 seconds remaining to give the Lions a little breathing room. He entered the game shooting 52.4 percent from the foul line and still remembers missing two late against Ohio State that would have given the Lions a lead.
"I had to redeem myself, especially going all the way back to the Ohio State game," Wheeler said. "I had a chance to knock two down and missed them, so just making them tonight was very big."
Brockington led Penn State with 13 points, underscoring the team's restrained offense. The Lions have scored in the 50s in back-to-back games after averaging 79 in their previous four. Harrar tried to put that into perspective.
"I was telling the team, I think we scored one more point against Wisconsin [72-56] but lost by [16]," he said. "We can win games when we score 55. It's about getting stops, keeping positive body language and knowing we're in the game in the last four minutes."
Penn State is scheduled to visit Michigan State on Tuesday night.
