Athletics

Men's basketball upsets No. 13 Ohio State 82-79

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COLUMBUS, Ohio - Sophomore guard Tony Carr hit the game-winning shot as time expired as Penn State defeated 13th-ranked Ohio State 82-79 at Value City Arena. Carr scored 20 of his game-high 28 points in the second half and 11 in the final 4:47. 

The Penn State's victory over No. 13 Ohio State is the highest-ranked opponent Nittany Lion road win since defeating No. 9 Michigan State in 2009.

Penn State led by as many as 13 points in the second half and had a nine-point lead with under three minutes remaining. The Nittany Lions held the lead for 37:26, but Ohio State battled back with four-straight field goals, including three 3-pointers by Bates-Diop, the last tying the game at 79 with five seconds remaining.

Just past mid-court, Carr launched the ball and banked in the buzzer-beating 3-pointer to give Ohio State (18-5, 9-1) its first Big Ten loss of the season and second loss of the year at home.

“We managed the game really well tonight,” said Penn State men’s basketball coach Patrick Chambers. “Tony’s floor game was as good as I have seen in a long time. He took good shots and tried to set the table for everybody. I give Tony credit for not calling my timeout that I wanted to call. Sometimes those non-calls are absolutely fantastic.”

The win over the No. 13 Buckeyes is Chambers' ninth win over a ranked opponent overall at Penn State and second vs. Ohio State, the last coming in a 71-70 overtime win over in the 2013-14 season. The Nittany Lions have two Big Ten road wins before January 31 for the first time since the 2007-08 season.

Penn State recorded its best-ever 3-point percentage in a single game going 11-14 from beyond the arc, including a perfect 5-5 in the second period, for 78.6 percent.

The Nittany Lions' previous best of 76.5 (13-17) for a minimum of 10 attempts was at Iowa on February 3, 1996. The 78.6 percentage is the second-best single-game mark in the nation in 2017-18.

The Nittany Lions parlayed that percentage into their best shooting performance of the season at 58.3 percent.

Carr was 10-14 from the field and 4-5 from beyond the arc with teammates Lamar Stevens adding 15 points and a team-high six rebounds. Garner finished with 14 points and Josh Reaves, who returned after missing the previous four games, had 10 off the bench.

The Buckeyes trailed at the half, 38-37, but took a two-point lead 41-39 with jumpers by Jae'Sean Tate and Kaleb Wesson. Carr countered with his first points of the half, a 3-pointer and Keita Bates-Diop would hit a jumper for a one-point Ohio State lead, 43-42, at 17:27.

Ohio State's next points would come on two free throws from Kam Williams at the 14:55 mark and the Buckeyes wouldn't get another basket until Tate had a layup three minutes later. The Nittany Lions' 13-4 run put them in front by eight points, 55-47.

Penn State extended its lead to double digits as Carr had six points in the stretch and Garner, who went 4-5 in the game, all 3-pointers, put the Nittany Lions up by 13. Deivis Zemgulis, who made his first career start, had a trey and jumper for his five points to keep the offensive momentum going.

Penn State took an early 18-6 lead in the first half, but the Buckeyes had a 12-3 run late in the period to tie the game at 30 all with 5:01 before the break. The two teams traded free throws and back-to-back buckets by Mike Watkins gave the Nittany Lions a 38-33 advantage. Ohio State scored the last four points going into the break. 

All five Ohio State starters scored in double figures with Keita Bates-Diop scoring 25 points and Jae'Sean Tate pulling down a game-best 10 rebounds. Penn State's bench outscored Ohio State 13-5 and had a 6-4 advantage in second-chance points.The Nittany Lions had only two turnovers in the second half.

Last Updated January 26, 2018