Penn State Delivers a Huge Win for Its Fans and Its Coach
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. | Penn State forward Leo O’Boyle, fresh off a 15-point performance layered with clutch shots and hustle plays, was the last player to walk off the Bryce Jordan Center floor Saturday night. Penn State student section surrounded him with high-fives, hugs and even a “Leo! Leo! Leo!” cheer.
O'Boyle deserved it, as he was a driving force behind Penn State’s miraculous 83-80 comeback win over Ohio State that snapped a brutal five-game losing streak. O’Boyle, a Lafayette transfer, had struggled mightily contribute what head coach Mike Rhoades brought him to Penn State to do: make 3-pointers. He’s still at roughly 27 percent for the season but went a crucial 4-for-5 Saturday as the Lions overcame an 18-point second-half deficit for their first Big Ten win over the season. O'Boyle, a wing player by trade, also spent a many of his 25 minutes as the biggest player on the floor, as Penn State had just one true big man available for the game.
“I was definitely in a major slump,” O’Boyle said after the win. “I can’t remember the last time I was shooting it that bad, but just getting in the gym every day after these games, shooting, getting by coaches, getting shots up, game-like situations — it's really translated to the games, and it definitely helped today. I definitely was feeling great, confident out there, especially when these guys are pumping me up. That makes me feel like I make every shot.”
O’Boyle’s night served as a microcosm of Penn State's win Saturday. Over the past two weeks, the Nittany Lions had gone 0-3 at an invitational tournament in Florida, returned home for a loss to Bucknell that Rhoades alluded to as embarrassing and fell to Maryland in overtime to open Big Ten play. Things seemed headed in that direction again, as the Lions trailed by 12 points at halftime and by 18 with 15:31 remaining. The crowd was out of it, and Penn State seemed to be, too. Then the Lions flipped a switch, going on a 23-9 run through the under-eight media timeout.
Penn State (5-5) clawed back to claim a 79-76 with 32 seconds to play. Ace Baldwin Jr., who finished with just nine points and struggled for most of the game, took over with back-to-back buckets that tied the game and gave the Lions a lead. After hitting the second shot, a 3-pointer, he covered his mouth with his hand and extended three fingers, a fitting celebration after quieting Ohio State (8-2).
“I felt like the 3s I took, they were in-and-out," Baldwin said of the dagger. "So on this one, [the Ohio State defender] kept backing out, so I was like, ‘Oh yeah, this one’s gotta drop.’ And I just felt it. It went in. We ain’t never give up. We played until the clock hit zero, and coach just told us after [halftime], ‘Just go out and play.’ That’s what we did.”
Penn State guard Ace Baldwin Jr. reacts after making a key 3-pointer in the second half against Ohio State.
Matthew O'Haren/USA Today Sports
As shots fell for Penn State, the Bryce Jordan Center crowd came back to life. It was clear the Lions fed of the energy after struggling to find consistency from the floor for much of the night, and all season. But the Lions shot 61 percent in the second half. And despite Ohio State's size advantage, Penn State won the rebounding battle 19-17 in the second half, scoring 14 points off second chances and eight off four turnovers.
Ohio State's Jamison Battle had a good look at a 3-point shot for the lead with 22 seconds remaining. It wasn't exactly the shot coach Chris Holtmann sought but one with which he was comfortable. But Battle missed, and Penn State's Qudus Wahab was fouled going for the rebound. Wahab made both free throws, each bouncing in off the front iron, to seal the comeback win.
“I think their defense speeds you up. I think it was a great environment. I give their defense a lot of credit for that. But again, they made shots. Those guys really made shots,” Holtmann said of Penn State. “Certainly, I think the things that we could control is defending the line better, [and] the glass and I think our aggressiveness against the zone. That's where we've got to get a lot better.”
Penn State shot below 33 percent from distance in each of its five straight losses but improved to 42 percent against Ohio State. The team also had struggled to get consistent contributions from players who weren’t Kanye Clary. On Saturday, though, five Lions scored in double digits.
Wahab (10 points) played one of his best offensive games and had a noteworthy tip out from under the basket offensively at the 2-minute mark that Clary fell on and turned into a jump ball — another play that elicited a roar from the crowd. D’Marco Dunn came off the bench to score a season-high 16 points, sparked by 2-for-4 shooting from deep and three steals. He also pulled down two pivotal offensive rebounds.
Rhoades brought in a roster filled with nine transfers for his first season at Penn State, and the group was bound to have growing pains. But few expected a five-game losing streak coming at this point in the season. Rhoades said Saturday that he had tough conversations over the past week, both with the team and a few individuals, about the situation. Those proved fruitful in the first signature win of Rhoades’ tenure at Penn State.
“Had it the whole time, right?” Rhoades joked when he reached the podium for his postgame press conference. “When you have a new team, a new coaching staff, everything's new, you just gotta go through everything. And that's what we've absolutely done so far in a very short season here, only 10 games. I've seen our guys find ways to persevere, find a little bit more today in that second half. At the 15-minute mark, down 18, I was like, 'Either you're gonna get totally embarrassed at home, or you gotta find some more together.' And they did that. And I'm just super proud of them.
“If this is how all the Big Ten games will go, I'm gonna lose my hair quick.”
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Max Ralph is a Penn State senior studying Broadcast Journalism with minors in sports studies and Japanese. He previously covered Penn State football for two years with The Daily Collegian and has reported with the Associated Press and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Follow him on Twitter (X) @maxralph_ and Instagram @mralph_59.
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