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Three takeaways from Penn State basketball's loss to Ohio State

IMG_1698 5 (1)by:David Eckert•12/05/21•

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Penn State forward John Harrar will work out as a tight end at Philadelphia Eagles rookie minicamp this weekend. (Manuel/BWI)

Penn State basketball made it interesting late, but fell to Ohio State in its Big Ten opener at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday, 76-64.

The Nittany Lions trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half but narrowed the margin to six with 2:39 to go.

A contested three-pointer on the next Ohio State possession all but ended their hopes, however, as they fell to 4-4 on the season and 0-1 in conference play.

“We’re getting better, but we’re not playing 40 minutes, and you have to against good teams,” Penn State head coach Micah Shrewsberry said.

3-point line makes the difference

Shrewsberry can live with the job Penn State did against a strong Ohio State interior presence.

EJ Liddell, who earned All-American honors from some outlets last season, finished 4-9 from the field with 14 points and five boards. Fellow big man Zed Key pitched in only four points.

The difference was made from beyond the arc. The Buckeyes connected on 12 of their 27 attempts. That includes two key, contested triples in the final five minutes as the Nittany Lions roared back.

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“There’s good shooters that we were choosing to leave and rotate from, and they did a good job of passing out of the double team when we were double-teaming in the first half,” Shrewsberry said.

Kyle Young shot a perfect 4-4 from three, and Justin Ahrens added three more triples.

Penn State couldn’t keep up. The Nittany Lions connected from outside just five times.

Against an opponent with superior talent and athleticism, that’s a recipe for a loss.

“The threes were the difference tonight,” Shrewsberry said.

Nittany Lion offense strugges with Harrar on the bench

Penn State forward John Harrar picked up his second foul of the game at the 7-minute mark of the first half, and that led to trouble.

Without him, the Nittany Lions were disjointed on the offensive end of the floor. Harrar isn’t just a scoring outlet — he finished with 12 points. He’s also crucial in Penn State’s ball screen action and a creative force in his own right.

When he wasn’t out there Sunday night, the Nittany Lions didn’t get very many good shots.

Harrar finished -3 in a game Penn State lost by 12.

“The only thing I’m thinking about is, how can I keep John out of foul trouble so I can play him just as much as I played [Jalen] Pickett?” Shrewsberry said.

Pickett played all 40 minutes for Penn State Sunday night.

Wheeler shows well in Penn State return

The Bryce Jordan Center crowd met Ohio State guard Jamari Wheeler with a chorus of boos every time he touched the ball on Sunday night.

Wheeler spent four seasons with the Nittany Lions before transferring to Columbus amid Penn State’s coaching turnover.

He chipped in with nine points and supplied nine assists, also grabbing five boards in his return to Happy Valley.

“He loves this place, so I know this was an emotional game for him in a lot of ways,” Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann said.

Asked about his reception postgame, Wheeler chose to highlight the positive aspects of it, including a handful of signs that welcomed him back.

“I would just say the love, other than the hate and all that,” Wheeler said when asked about his takeaways from the night. “All the signs I seen. I had family meet us at the hotel

“It just shows that I still have love here.”

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