IU men’s basketball didn’t lose its lead for the first 39 minutes and 32 seconds in its game against Penn State on Wednesday. That was until junior guard Sam Sessoms hit a jumper to put the Nittany Lions up 80-79 with 28 seconds left.
Then 21 seconds later, sophomore forward Trayce Jackson-Davis was fouled. He went to the free throw line for two shots, down one point. But he only hit one free throw and it was time for overtime.
Through five minutes of extra time, the Hoosiers pulled off their first win in Big Ten play over the Nittany Lions, 87-85.
Junior guard Rob Phinisee stepped back to hit a jumper with 13 seconds left in overtime to ultimately give the Hoosiers the win. Over the last two conference games, Phinisee has only scored eight points. But against Penn State, the junior stepped up.
“I feel like I had to make the shot for my team,” Phinisee said.
[Related: Redemption for Rob Phinisee, Al Durham in IU men’s basketball’s 87-85 win over Penn State]
He said his teammates gave him the confidence to keep playing aggressive.
The Hoosiers ended their losing streak and earned their first conference win by getting the entire team involved. IU had five players score in double-digits, with Jackson-Davis’ 21 points leading the team.
“We’re very excited to get the two-game losing streak off our minds,” IU head coach Archie Miller. “Especially when you’re in this league it weighs on you.”
But the difference this game was production from senior guard Al Durham and Phinisee. In their game against Northwestern on Dec. 23, the two guards combined for six points. Against Penn State, they combined for 29 points.
“Our team will only go as far as our veteran, returning players will take us,” Miller said.
Although the Hoosiers had no problem finding the basket — shooting 57% from the field — they also struggled to stop Penn State on defense.
Including the end of regulation, the teams were tied up six times during the game. There was a stretch early in the second half where IU and Penn State traded baskets back and forth.
But after the under-12 minute timeout, IU started getting stops on the defensive end, which helped the team find its rhythm on offense. Miller has said defense translates to offense, and it did.
Once Seth Lundy hit a layup to tie the game at 53 at the 12:43 mark, the Hoosiers went on a 13-1 run over the next three minutes.
After leading by as many as 12 points in the second half, IU let it slip away by not being able to guard the perimeter. Miller knew they were a threat from 3-point range going into the game because they were averaging nearly 10 a game. The Nittany Lions hit 12 3-pointers against the Hoosiers.
Penn State’s style of play brought IU’s frontcourt away from the basket to defend ball screens. The Hoosiers also struggled to defend the ball screens, leaving defenders out of rotation and shooters open. And when they didn’t knock down those shots from range, IU’s best rebounders weren’t under the basket.
“Rebounding has been a struggle for us, especially when we play a team that takes a lot of 3-point shots,” Miller said.
IU’s defensive struggles let Penn State get back into the game. And when the game got close, the Hoosiers didn’t have their favorite weapon — the Assembly Hall crowd.
Miller said not having that crowd there is very frustrating because he’s looking for them to help the team.
“For us, when we play a home game, I can’t tell you how weird it is,” Miller said. “I don’t think we’ll ever get used to it.”
But when it came down to the final seconds in overtime, the Hoosiers didn’t need the crowd of 17,000. Phinisee stepped up to hit the shot and end the team’s losing streak.
