Indiana men’s basketball is one of college basketball’s most storied programs, and at noon Sunday, the Hoosiers (11-3, 2-1 Big Ten) will tip off in one of the sport’s most historic venues.
Fourth-year head coach Mike Woodson’s squad is set to take on Penn State (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten) at The Palestra in Philadelphia. The Palestra, which was built in 1927 and is home to the University of Pennsylvania’s basketball games, is often referred to as “the Cathedral of College Basketball” and is the oldest major college arena still in use.
Indiana has a 43-17 record all-time against Penn State, including a 61-59 win in the Big Ten Tournament on March 14, 2024, but the Nittany Lions won each of the four regular season meetings from 2022-24. The Hoosiers’ last win on the road against Penn State was Dec. 4, 2018.
Penn State has won each of its last four games, while Indiana enters Sunday riding a three-game winning streak, capped by an 84-74 win over Rutgers on Thursday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Now, the Hoosiers set their sights on grabbing their first true road win of the season — but they’ll face a tall task at The Palestra.
Meet the Nittany Lions
Led by second-year head coach Mike Rhoades, Penn State is off to a strong start after going just 16-17 (9-11 Big Ten) last season. The Nittany Lions have a balanced scoring attack, as five players average double figures.
Penn State is undefeated at home this season, headlined by an 81-70 win over Purdue on Dec. 5 and an 84-80 victory over Northwestern on Thursday. Each of the Nittany Lions’ defeats have been on the road, as they fell 75-67 to Clemson University on Nov. 26 and 80-76 at Rutgers on Dec. 10.
Penn State’s on-court attack is spearheaded by fifth-year senior guard Ace Baldwin Jr., who averages 15 points per game and ranks second in the Big Ten with 8.5 assists per game. Baldwin, the 2023-24 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, is a 94.4% free throw shooter, tied for the best mark in the conference among those who average at least one attempt per game at the foul stripe.
Junior forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser is the Nittany Lions’ second-leading scorer. The 7-footer averages 13.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He’s a force on the offensive glass, as his 2.4 offensive rebounds per contest is tied for fifth-most in the conference.
Zach Hicks takes the fifth-most 3-pointers in the Big Ten at 6.1 per game, and he makes triples at a 44.7% clip. Hicks, a 6-foot-7 senior forward, scores 12.6 points and pulls down 4.5 rebounds per game.
Penn State rounds out its starting five with senior guard/forward Puff Johnson, who’s averaging 10.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, and senior guard Freddie Dilione, a 9.9-point scorer per night.
The Nittany Lions have a weapon off the bench in senior guard Nicholas Kern, who’s averaging 11.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. Kerr is the second-leading scorer in the Big Ten among those who haven’t started a game this season.
Penn State ranks well in several categories nationally. The Nittany Lions are seventh in scoring at 87.9 points per game, 11th in assists with 18.4 per game, 15th in field goal rate at 50.4% and 18th in steals with 10 per game.
The Hoosiers are 6.5-point underdogs, according to ESPN.
Broadcast
Sunday’s game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network, with Brandon Gaudin handling play-by-play duties alongside color analyst Robbie Hummel.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa) and columnist Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
