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Column: Closing gap against B1G best, next step is clear

Josh Reaves stood alone at the end of the bench, three feet past the baseline, hands on his hips.

The Nittany Lion sophomore guard wore the look of obvious frustration, unable to walk the postgame handshake line that would fully cement his team’s 74-70 overtime loss to No. 14 Purdue. Finally trudging ahead to hug head coach Matt Painter and the rest of the Boilermakers, the last vestiges of a game that had been there for Penn State’s taking were officially gone.

Against the Big Ten’s best team this season, the Nittany Lions edged out the rebounding battle, 40-38, finished with 10 blocks and 12 steals, and forced a total of 17 turnovers while leading for 32 minutes, 32 seconds of action. Only one critical statistical category proved to fall short for the Nittany Lions; points.

“It was one of those games, and it rarely happens, where a team outplays another one, plays harder and they lose the game especially on their home court. I think the only category we won tonight was the only one that’s important and that’s the final score,” said Painter. “They out-rebounded us, they were quicker with the ball, they played harder than we did… We’re very lucky to get out of here with a win.”

Stevens and Swanigan battled in the paint last night, the Lions holding a 46-12 edge in the category by the game's end.
Stevens and Swanigan battled in the paint last night, the Lions holding a 46-12 edge in the category by the game's end.

Currently, the Nittany Lions are likely feeling the opposite when it comes to luck.

Sinking to 14-14 overall for the season with the loss, Penn State’s season has been one of missed opportunities, particularly in the Big Ten. Owning a 6-9 record heading into the final three games of the conference schedule, the Nittany Lions have found themselves on the wrong side of every close game they’ve played dating back to a 52-50 win against a ranked Minnesota team on Jan. 14.

In the time since, Penn State has lost to Indiana on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, 78-75; at Indiana in a triple-overtime slugfest, 110-102; against Rutgers at the Bryce Jordan Center, 70-68; and again Tuesday night versus Purdue in overtime. These losses, of course, are in addition to a 72-69 loss at Michigan in the third game of the Big Ten schedule.

The issue, of course, is that arguments of luck have no impact on the win-loss column.

Stats do, however. And what a deeper dive into Penn State’s statistics tell this season is that the program is closer than it has been in recent memory to fielding a competitive group night in and night out in the Big Ten.

Taking over following the team’s NCAA appearance in 2010-11, Chambers’ first few seasons told a story of competitiveness, or lack thereof. Beginning with the 2011-12 season, the Nittany Lions’ scoring margin against Big Ten opponents has been as follows, with their final conference record in parenthesis:

2011-12: -7.9 (4-14)

2012-13: -10.1 (2-16)

2013-14: -4.4 (6-12)

2014-15: -3.9 (4-14)

2015-16: -7.8 (7-11)

2016-17: -3.4 (6-9)

Currently besting D.J. Newbill’s senior campaign in 2014-15, one in which the Nittany Lions lost nine of 14 games by single digits and six by six-or-fewer points, this group now led entirely by freshmen and without a senior on the roster has proven its mettle against the Big Ten.

All of which might explain why Tuesday night’s overtime loss to Purdue had a different feel to it.

Squaring off against the top-scoring team in Big Ten competition, averaging 81.3 points per game, the Nittany Lions produced a frantic, punishing defensive effort. Mike Watkins battled Caleb Swanigan, a likely B1G Player of the Year winner, to just 10 points and nine rebounds against his own 11 points and 13 rebounds. Lamar Stevens produced 18 points on 8 of 20 shooting and played 39 minutes, much of it similarly stacked against Purdue’s dominating bigs. And Tony Carr simply took the game over at the end of regulation, scoring 12 of Penn State’s final 16 points to help erase an 8-point deficit with 2:55 left to play.

Just a day after having to answer questions about inconsistent effort this season - once a hallmark of Chambers’ coached teams despite obvious skill deficiencies - his club went all-in on the Boilermakers. That it would go unrewarded, he said, was a tough pill to swallow.

“It is unfortunate - to hold a team like Purdue to 29 and 35 you should come out on top,” said Chambers. “Again, some lapses and a rebound here and there was what messed us up.”

Instead of the seven 3-pointers Chambers hoped to see, the Nittany Lions fell far short of their goals from beyond-the-arc. While junior Shep Garner knocked down 2 of 8 attempts from deep, veteran Payton Banks simply couldn’t find his touch on in-rhythm shots, finishing the game missing all five attempts and producing a single rebound in 26 minutes of action. Even Stevens, who finished second in scoring to Carr with 18 points, came up empty on his five 3-point attempts.

Without a standard-bearer from deep, the program's fate this season will continue to hinge on standout defensive performances and clutch scoring closer to the basket.

Still, encouraged by the performances of Carr, Stevens and Watkins, each of whom put together some of their best efforts of the season against their toughest competition, Chambers acknowledged the foundation for the program as it finishes out the season.

“That gives us encouragement for the future because you get to see how talented these guys are. They tried to defend and rebound as hard as I have ever seen them play all year long. They are going to be really good,” said Chambers. “We got corner stones for sure. We are just tapping into their potential. They are so talented but now they have got to learn to play hard and to play consistent not only in practice but also on Saturday against Minnesota.”

Frustrated by so many near-misses this season, but at the very beginning of their careers, the Nittany Lions have the experiences and opportunity to change those results moving forward.

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