Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports The Lions have now lost three straight after winning three straight 
Coming off back-to-back losses and looking to rekindle the good vibes from their three-game winning streak that preceded said losses, Penn State hit the road to a place totally ideal to get back on track: Nebraska’s Pinnacle Bank Arena. I kid, of course, because the Huskers have been an incredible 15-1 in the friendly confines of their home court, and the Nittany Lions had the tall task of trying to become only the second team this season to walk out of Lincoln with a dub with a short-handed squad missing Kanye Clary, who did not make the trip for undisclosed reasons. The first half remained close, as neither team shot the ball all too well, but Nebraska had a little more firepower offensively, and would ultimately push the lead to six points by halftime. The second half saw the flood gates open, as the Huskers caught fire with the trio of Keisei Tominaga (aka “Japanese Steph Curry”), Juwan Gary, and Rienk Mast nailing shots, while PSU remained ice-cold shooting the rock, especially from deep (5-for-23 on 3-pointers) and from the free throw line (a pathetic 6-for-12). That’s it. Really not much more you can say other than burn the tape on this one and move on to the next game. Player of the Game Zach Hicks - 13 points, 6 rebounds Ace Baldwin, Jr. - 10 points, 5 steals, 2 assists On a day when the team was shooting poorly (PSU finished at 33% from the floor), Hicks was able to lead the team in scoring, as he and Ace ended up being the only Nittany Lions to hit double figures in scoring. Ace was held scoreless in the first half, but started to pick it up a bit in the second half, while also pickpocketing the rock several times. Random Observations - Clankity-clank - Yes, defense travels, but it’s still a pretty helpless feeling watching shots continually miss their target and realizing that the other team will have to struggle just as much in order to have a chance to win the game. That’s how watching this game felt.
- Where’s the effort? - It seemed like the team was just checked out in the second half, especially as Nebraska started to catch fire. It’s a sight we’ve unfortunately seen one too many times this year in losses like today’s. This team desperately needs another win soon to regain some positive momentum for the final stretch of the season.
- Huskers Belong - Nebraska is the only team in the B1G with wins over both Purdue (who is making a case for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament) and Wisconsin. It’s taken him until Year 5, but Fred Hoiberg finally has a squad that is humming on all cylinders and looks every bit the part of an NCAA squad. Also, who doesn’t want to see Japanese Steph Curry try to create some March moments that we’ll remember for a lifetime?
Source: https://www.blackshoediaries.com/2024/2 ... i-tominaga