That's it. The final score IU 81 Penn State 65. It wasn't as easy as the score indicates for the Hoosiers, but give Penn State credit for hanging around for the first 30 minutes of this game. IU improves to 5-0 in Big Ten play and is tied with Wisconsin for first place.
So this game turns out how most people thought it would, afterall. Penn State has fallen apart in the last few minutes. The Hoosiers now lead 81-62 with just under two minutes remaining.
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Penn State unveils a full court press. IU struggled against the press at Minnesota, we'll see how they fare here. Gordon is fouled as he dribbles up the court and hits both free throws.
74-60@3:42
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IU has put some space between itself and PSU, building a 14-point lead with 3:50 to go. It looks like the Nittany Lions are finally running out of steam.
72-58@3:50
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EJ goes to the line for the first time today after getting fouled on a drive.
67-58@5:28
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A nasty block by Ellis gets the crowd going. Eric Gordon is whistled for his first foul and now the crowd is really worked up. Free throws for Battle.
65-58@6:00
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Eric Gordon drives to the basket and gets fouled. It took nearly 34 minutes, but EJ finally got mean.
63-56@6:46
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Time out Penn State after an Ellis lay up. IU has built a 7-point lead here at the 7:11 mark.
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PSU's Mike Walter enters the game and promptly loses the ball out of bounds. The way PSU is shooting a lost possession is huge for IU. White hits another jumper.
61-56@7:35
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The crowd boos as D.J. is called for this third foul. The Hoosiers have accumulated five fouls to PSU's three this half.
58-56@8:27
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A D.J. White baseline jumper gives IU a 4-point lead. White has 17 points at this point in the game (tied with Gordon and Cornley for the game high).
58-54@8:54
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A D.J. White dunk makes the score 56-54 with just under 10 minutes in the half. IU played solid defense on the last possession, but couldn't corral the rebound. PSU was forced to call timeout on the inbounds.
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Morrissey and Battle continue to kill IU from 3-point range, but Gordon and Bassett answer.
54-54@11:11
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It's knotted at 46 at the 13:26 mark. Ellis tied it up before the timeout.
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Bassett hits a 3 from the corner.
44-44@14:30
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Cornley scores inside and get fouled by D.J. White. Cornley was rather demonstrative after the foul. This Penn State team is jacked right now.
41-44@15:38
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D.J. asserts himself down low after Cornley scores. Jackson hits a shot from the baseline for PSU. Then, PSU gets a lay up. Penn State continues to roll on offense. Time out.
41-42@16:24
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PSU's Jeff Brooks scores on the first possession of the second half. Gordon misses a 3 on the other end, but scores on a four-footer.
39-36@18:30
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One thing that stands out on the stat sheet for the first half is Gordon's free throw attempts. He is 0 for 0. Gordon settled for outside shots in the first half, making 4 of his six 3-point attempts, but IU needs him to be more aggressive in the second half.
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Stemler added a 3 to give IU 37 points at halftime. PSU's Battle finishes the half with 11 points, and Penn State is very much in this game. I guess you can't take ANY games for granted in this conference. IU will have to defend the perimeter better to win this game in the second half.
37-34@Halftime
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Penn State has connected on 6 of 8 shots from beyond the arc. That stat is killing IU right now.
34-32@0:56
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Another Penn State 3 and a basket by Jamelle Cornley gives PSU the lead again. Ellis counters with a basket, but then so does Penn State. The offense is flowing on both sides.
32-32@1:25
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Perhaps to make up for the turnover, Bassett drains a 3. D.J. White makes a pair of free throws to regain the lead.
27-25@4:13
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A turnover by Bassett leads to a fastbreak lay up plus the foul for Stanley Pringle.
22-25@5:14
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A 3 by Mike Walker knots the game at 22. Sampson said the Nittany Lions would be looking to prove themselves after the loss of Claxton, and he appears to be right as Penn State has played inspired basketball in the first 14 minutes.
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Penn State is forced to call a timeout as Stemler and Thomas had a man pinned along the baseline. It has to be difficult to find a passing lane when a guy like Thomas is draped on your back.
22-17@7:41
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Gordon misses his first shot of the game from long range. Always a shock.
22-17@8:45
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D.J. sits as DeAndrae Thomas, Stemler, Ratliff, Gordon and Bassett take the court.
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Battle answers Gordon's third 3 with one of his own. It seems every team has an impressive freshman this season.
22-17@9:52
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Danny Morrison and freshman Talor Battle have accounted for all but one of Penn State's points, keeping the game close early. D.J. gets fouled on a transition lay up attempt and will shoot free throws. Time out.
16-12@11:57
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Stemler picks up two fouls in less than a minute. IU fans promptly forget about his clutch 3-pointer last Thursday.
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Penn State switches to a 2-3 zone, but IU still manages to get the ball inside to D.J. who gets fouled.
14-7@14:38
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Eric Gordon nails his second 3-pointer of the game and Mike White gets a lay up off a steal. Time out.
12-6@15:19
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White gets the basket and the foul. IU takes its first lead of the game 7-6 at 16:30.
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First turnover of the day comes off a flubbed pass to the post from Jamarcus Ellis. Hopefully, IU takes better care of the ball today. A baby hook from D.J. is IU's first basket.
2-6@17:35
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Starters for IU: EJ, Crawford, Mike White, Ellis and DJ.
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Fifteen minutes until tipoff here at Assembly Hall. Several thousand fans have braved the cold to see the Hoosiers face Penn State, but the Hall isn't even half full yet.
Both teams are warming up right now. Everyone is dressed for IU except Eli Holmen a.k.a The Man in Black. (It's nice to see that someone is giving Eli fashion tips.)
Probable starters for Penn State include forwards Jamelle Cornley, who averages the most points per game behind Geary Claxton at 12.1, Jeff Brooks and Brandon Hassell and guards Danny Morrissey and Talor Battle. I know what you're thinking, whatever happened to the Crispin brothers?
