Despite going to the break down just two points, Penn State men’s basketball (6-8, 3-7 Big Ten) lost to Wisconsin (14-5, 8-4 Big Ten) 72-56 in Madison Tuesday night.

Myreon Jones led the way for the Nittany Lions with 14 points in the loss. On the other side of the court, a 17-point night off the bench from Jonathan Davis led the Badgers to the win.

How It Happened

Both teams flexed their depth in the early going. In the first few minutes, each squad had three of its starters score before someone went back for seconds.

The Badgers held an early advantage, although Penn State kept the contest close through its typical stingy defense and Brockington’s offensive aggressiveness.

If the first five minutes were free flowing, the next 15 could only be described as scrappy. Penn State and Wisconsin combined for 18 turnovers in the first half, which allowed for many periodic dry spells from both teams.

Despite some classic Big Ten physicality, a slow-but-steady 7-0 run from the Nittany Lions tied the game at 25 with 4:30 to play in the first half, only for Wisconsin to take its own five-point run.

After being quiet for much of the first half, Sam Sessoms took over at the end of the period, converting a layup and then providing Trent Buttrick on a sweet dish to bring the score to 30-29.

Sam Sessoms can throw it on a dime too, folks pic.twitter.com/YTJLnfIGVx

— Onward State (@OnwardState) February 3, 2021

The Binghamton transfer then hit a floater to give Penn State the lead, but Brad Davison hit a three at the buzzer to take the 33-31 advantage to the locker room.

Penn State began the second half cold, while Wisconsin came out firing. A 9-0 Badgers run forced Jim Ferry to call timeout with 17:33 to play following a transition three from Davison. It took until 15:46 left in the half for Penn State to score through Brockington.

Turnovers began to hurt the Nittany Lions more and more. Wisconsin started the half shooting 6-for-10 from the floor, and a 17-4 start to the period for the Badgers ballooned their lead to 15.

Myreon Jones hit a three with 10:40 to play, the first of the half for the Nittany Lions. Following Jones’ bucket, Harrar hit a fadeaway and it looked like Penn State had some life back. Wisconsin once again shut down a quick Nittany Lions runt through a pair of Jonathan Davis three-pointers, however.

To make matters worse for Penn State, Harrar went to the bench with what appeared to be back spasms and didn’t return. The body language changed from there, and Wisconsin killed the game in the last five minutes.

Takeaways

• It may have been an ugly finish, but this team has grit, folks. Between John Harrar’s dogfight mentality, Jamari Wheeler’s refusal to quit, and the scoring prowess late in the shot clock from Seth Lundy, Penn State is always going to make things tough for its opponent. Yes, the Nittany Lions are undersized. Yes, they can go cold at times. But Penn State remains an NCAA bubble team largely because of its grit.
• No matter how much determination Penn State brought, the team lost through its lack of scoring ability in the second half. The Nittany Lions especially struggled from behind the three point line, going a dismal 6-for-24 in the loss. Penn State lives and dies from three at times, but just couldn’t convert tonight.
• Penn State also enjoys playing on the break, but that didn’t happen tonight. Unlike in the first matchup on Saturday, Wisconsin stifled the Nittany Lions and didn’t Ferry’s men to play quickly. The Badgers also helped themselves to 12 offensive rebounds, which hurt Penn State’s ability to get too many transition opportunities.

What’s Next

Penn State will head back to the Bryce Jordan Center this Friday to host Maryland. The game will begin at 7 p.m. and air on FS1.