Big Ten men's basketball news, February 28 - Penn State stuns Iowa
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It was yet another exciting Saturday night in the Big Ten as Big Ten men's hoops delivered another shocking upset. The Big Ten remains unpredictable on a night-to-night basis, as any team can beat any team on any given night. The one thing that remains consistent just might be that USC will continue to fumble its chances in must-win games.
Here are the scores and the rest of my analysis from the games in Big Ten basketball, played on Saturday:
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Penn State 71-69 vs Iowa
The worst team in the Big Ten, the Iowa Hawkeyes, handed a contending team a bizarre loss to start the Saturday slate. It seemed as if the season was as good as dead for Penn State, and they entered this game with a 3-game losing streak. This game was a battle, and each team fought hard to either regain or take control of the game. Josh Reed leads Penn State to victory with 18 of his 25 points coming in the second half of this game. He was the best player on the court as Bennett Stirtz struggled from the field. This was just another game that really attacks the credibility of a team like Iowa, which let Penn State hang around the entire game. Penn State gets a key morale win, and Iowa looks to be a team that could go down early in March Madness.
Northwestern 63-62 vs Oregon
Nick Martinelli's great week continued as his game-winner pushed the Wildcast over the Oregon Ducks. Martinelli finished this game with 22 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals. It was an all-around start performance for Martinelli, and he put the team on his back to steal this game from Oregon. Nate Bittle posted a solid outing, finishing the game with 19 points on efficient shooting, along with 9 rebounds. The Ducks had a 36-29 lead at the end of the first half but the Wildcats refused to be put away in this game. This now marks 3 straight wins, and the Wildcats are sold on ending the season with a bang.
Minnesota 78-73 vs UCLA
Minnesota complications thing for UCLA, dishing them an upset right as the season is closing. Minnesota had 3 of its starters chipping in 20-point performances, with Boddy Durkin leading the way with 23 points, and 7-11 shooting from 3. The Gophers did not take many 3-point shots, but the ones they did, it seemed as if everyone went in. Minnesota shot 52.2% beyond the arc. Tyler Bilodeau rose to the occasion and was the best player on the court with 32 points and 4-7 beyond the arc. With just about 7 minutes left in the game, the Giophers made plays to get a lead, and they never let up to close the 4th quarter and game on top.
Wisconsin 90-73 vs Washington
Wisconsin brought its A game Saturday as they steam rolled the Washington Huskies. The Huskies got 22 points from their star Hannes Steinbach and 21 points from Zoom Diallo, but that was still not enough to come close to the Badgers' offense. Nick Boyd was just as good as he chipped in 22 points himself, and the big difference was 32 points from Braden Carrington off the bench. Carrington was 9-15 from the 3-point line. It was a hot night for the Badgers as a whole as they finished the game shooting 44% from 3 on 38 attempts. Just the game the Badgers needed to have after fumbling a game vs the Oregon Ducks. They showed vs a similar opponent that they can take care of business. For Washington, this loss pushes them a game back from being 500, but two games vs Oregon and USC give them a great shot to finish the season 500.
No. 12 Nebraska 82-67 vs USC
Another game, another blowout loss for the Trojans. This time around, there were no bright sides for the Trojans. The Trojans ended the 1st half with a 36-31 lead, and once the Cornhuskers took the lead at the 17-minute mark in the second, that was all she wrote for this game. The Cornhuskers were able to continue to chip away, and eventually it became a 15-point victory. Pryce Sandfort had his 2nd 30-point game in the last 3 games. In this one, he was lights out, shooting 5-10 from 3 and 12-21 from the field. It was an impressive showing from Braden Fager, who outscored the Trojans' whole team with 17 points off the bench. This was a game that showcased the Cornhuskers as a contending team that had been getting beaten as a different class than USC. This game completely sinks the season and kills all hope for USC to finish the season off on a high note.
Overview
Penn State gets its moment of the season to try to lessen what has been a very forgettable season. This is the time for teams to play their best role as a spoiler and hinder another team's chances at a great postseason, which is just what Penn State did. Nebraska and Wisconsin both displayed the best versions of themselves to try and get where they needed to be as the season closes. While Northwestern has been playing its best basketball in the last stretch of games and this season for Nick Martinelli will be remembered at Northwestern.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Biggest winners & losers on February 28 for Big Ten men's basketball