National Basketball Association
Indiana 77, Penn St. 71
When: 12:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 5, 2025
Where: The Palestra, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Officials:
# D.J. Carstensen, # Randy Richardson, # Owen Shortt
Attendance:
6126
By Field Level Media
Oumar Ballo collected game highs of 25 points and 13 rebounds as Indiana topped Penn State 77-71 on Sunday in Philadelphia.
Mackenzie Mgbako scored 20 points for the Hoosiers (12-3, 3-1 Big Ten), who won their fourth straight game. Luke Goode chipped in 12 points, while Trey Galloway had eight points and six assists.
Penn State (12-3, 2-2), which had won four straight, was led by reserve Nick Kern's 21 points. Ace Baldwin Jr. pitched in 12 points and seven assists, and Freddie Dilione V added 11 points.
Neither team led by more than four during a first half that ended in a 29-29 tie. Ballo led the Hoosiers with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, while his teammates were 6-of-18 collectively in the opening 20 minutes.
Indiana began the second half emphatically by scoring the first 12 points.
Mgbako did the heavy lifting at first, knocking down two 3-pointers and a layup to put the Hoosiers ahead 37-29. Myles Rice and Ballo each followed with a bucket to put the visitors up by a dozen.
Yanic Konan Niederhauser and Baldwin helped Penn State chip away, as the Nittany Lions snuck within 47-39 with under 15 minutes left. However, Rice and Goode connected on 3-pointers to push the margin back to 14.
Ballo's bucket with 11 1/2 minutes left increased the lead to 15 for the first time, and then Galloway's 3-pointer a minute later made it 61-45.
Kern and Dilione accounted for all the scoring during a 9-1 run as the Nittany Lions closed to within 62-54, but Mgbako's 3-pointer restored an 11-point cushion.
However, Penn State kept fighting. The team scored seven straight -- including 3-pointers by Dilione and Kern -- to trim the deficit to 65-61 with under six minutes remaining.
Ballo helped keep the Hoosiers ahead over the next several minutes, but the Nittany Lions went on a 6-0 run, capped by Zach Hicks' 3-pointer, to get within 73-71 with 1:43 left.
Penn State missed its final six shots -- all 3-pointers -- as Indiana held on. Mgbako and Rice each went 2-of-2 from the foul line in the final minute to secure the victory.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Indiana |
|
Penn St. |
Oumar Ballo 25 |
Scoring |
Nick Kern Jr. 21 |
Trey Galloway 6 |
Assists |
Adrian Baldwin Jr. 7 |
Oumar Ballo 13 |
Rebounds |
Yanic Konan Niederhauser 8 |
Oumar Ballo 7 |
Free Throws Made |
Nick Kern Jr. 4 |
Luke Goode 2 |
Steals |
Nick Kern Jr. 2 |
Oumar Ballo 2 |
Blocks |
Freddie Dilione V 2 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Indiana
|
77 |
44.8 |
9-23 |
16-22 |
17 |
35 |
2 |
6 |
14 |
Penn St.
|
71 |
46.0 |
3-21 |
10-17 |
13 |
26 |
5 |
6 |
10 |