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Despite a career-high 23 points from Devoe Joseph, Minnesota fell to Penn State 68-63 Saturday afternoon at the Bryce Jordan Center in State College, PA.
Joseph, who entered the game averaging 4.6 points per contest, went 7-of-8 from three-point range in the second half - tying a school record for three's in a game - to rally the Gophers back from a nine-point deficit. Al Nolen added 10 points and five assists and Paul Carter poured in six points and seven rebounds for Minnesota, which is now 19-6 overall and 7-6 in the Big Ten.
The Big Ten's leading scorer, Talor Battle, paced Penn State with 21 points. Stanley Pringle hit three huge three-pointers in the second half and finished with 13 points for the Nittany Lions, who improve to 18-8 overall and 7-6 in conference play.
Down nine with 10 minutes left in regulation, Joseph hit four three pointers in a five-minute span – leading Minnesota on a 17-5 run and putting the Gophers up 56-53 with 5:16 left to go.
But the Gophers couldn’t hold on to the lead, going without a field goal for the next 5:06 of regulation Still up three with 2:40 to go, Battle hit a three to tie the game, propelling the Nittany Lions on a 10-0 in the final moments of play to secure a much needed win for Ed DeChellis’ squad.
Minnesota and Penn State both came into Saturday afternoon’s game realizing the importance of their Valentine’s Day matchup. For the Nittany Lions, a win Saturday would keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. For the Gophers, meanwhile, a victory would put the Maroon and Gold one step closer to securing an automatic bid to the ‘Big Dance.’
From the get-go, both teams played the contest as if it was a “must win.” The Gophers and Nittany Lions - perhaps anxious to make big plays - combined for 22 turnovers in an uptight first half which saw both teams also shoot poorly from the field (Minnesota went 6-of-21 and Penn State 8-of-22).
The sloppy first half featured eight ties and 12 lead changes. Minnesota held a 23-21 lead in the closing seconds of the first stanza, but a Gophers turnover led to a buzzer-beating three by Battle which put the Nittany Lions ahead 24-23 at halftime.
Minnesota regained the lead on the first possession of the second half thanks to a jumper by Lawrence Westbrook, but from there the Nittany Lions- mostly thanks to Pringle - broke open the back-and-forth affair.
Pringle caught fire, hitting three consecutive three-pointers, to put Penn State ahead 41-32 with 13:48 left in the second stanza.
Still down nine with 10 minutes remaining, Joseph – who went 8-of-11 from the field – single-handedly kept the Gophers afloat; hitting four three’s in a five minute span and putting the Maroon and Gold ahead 56-53.
Minnesota held its three-point lead for nearly three minutes until Battle tied the game from downtown with 2:40 to go.
With the Gophers down 58-56 with just over a minute to go and the ball, Battle stole the ball from Joseph and went coast-to-coast for a layup to give Penn State a two possession lead at 60-56. Moments later, the Nittany Lions grabbed an offensive rebound on a missed free throw by Battle, securing the victory for the home team.
Minnesota returns to action on Thursday when the Gophers travel to Ann Arbor to challenge Michigan.
Joseph, who entered the game averaging 4.6 points per contest, went 7-of-8 from three-point range in the second half - tying a school record for three's in a game - to rally the Gophers back from a nine-point deficit. Al Nolen added 10 points and five assists and Paul Carter poured in six points and seven rebounds for Minnesota, which is now 19-6 overall and 7-6 in the Big Ten.
The Big Ten's leading scorer, Talor Battle, paced Penn State with 21 points. Stanley Pringle hit three huge three-pointers in the second half and finished with 13 points for the Nittany Lions, who improve to 18-8 overall and 7-6 in conference play.
Down nine with 10 minutes left in regulation, Joseph hit four three pointers in a five-minute span – leading Minnesota on a 17-5 run and putting the Gophers up 56-53 with 5:16 left to go.
But the Gophers couldn’t hold on to the lead, going without a field goal for the next 5:06 of regulation Still up three with 2:40 to go, Battle hit a three to tie the game, propelling the Nittany Lions on a 10-0 in the final moments of play to secure a much needed win for Ed DeChellis’ squad.
Minnesota and Penn State both came into Saturday afternoon’s game realizing the importance of their Valentine’s Day matchup. For the Nittany Lions, a win Saturday would keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. For the Gophers, meanwhile, a victory would put the Maroon and Gold one step closer to securing an automatic bid to the ‘Big Dance.’
From the get-go, both teams played the contest as if it was a “must win.” The Gophers and Nittany Lions - perhaps anxious to make big plays - combined for 22 turnovers in an uptight first half which saw both teams also shoot poorly from the field (Minnesota went 6-of-21 and Penn State 8-of-22).
The sloppy first half featured eight ties and 12 lead changes. Minnesota held a 23-21 lead in the closing seconds of the first stanza, but a Gophers turnover led to a buzzer-beating three by Battle which put the Nittany Lions ahead 24-23 at halftime.
Minnesota regained the lead on the first possession of the second half thanks to a jumper by Lawrence Westbrook, but from there the Nittany Lions- mostly thanks to Pringle - broke open the back-and-forth affair.
Pringle caught fire, hitting three consecutive three-pointers, to put Penn State ahead 41-32 with 13:48 left in the second stanza.
Still down nine with 10 minutes remaining, Joseph – who went 8-of-11 from the field – single-handedly kept the Gophers afloat; hitting four three’s in a five minute span and putting the Maroon and Gold ahead 56-53.
Minnesota held its three-point lead for nearly three minutes until Battle tied the game from downtown with 2:40 to go.
With the Gophers down 58-56 with just over a minute to go and the ball, Battle stole the ball from Joseph and went coast-to-coast for a layup to give Penn State a two possession lead at 60-56. Moments later, the Nittany Lions grabbed an offensive rebound on a missed free throw by Battle, securing the victory for the home team.
Minnesota returns to action on Thursday when the Gophers travel to Ann Arbor to challenge Michigan.
