How Penn State basketball rallied for a big win over No. 15 Virginia Tech after disappointing loss
Penn State left Sunday night’s overtime loss to Seton Hall with a bad taste in its mouth. The Nittany Lions jumped out to a double-digit lead early and kept it at eight with a few minutes on the clock in the game. Instead of closing out the win, they fell apart, dropping the game to the Pirates for their first defeat of the season.
But on Tuesday night, they came out full of energy and drive against the Virginia Tech Hokies in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge — a side effect of the frustrating loss two days prior that pushed them to their 75-55 win with an aggressive defense and fast-paced offense.
“We had to come out on fire,” junior guard Izaiah Brockington said on the Penn State radio show following the game. “We had to come out and really try to get a big win today. We just really wanted to get that bad taste out of our mouth, from how we lost the lead and everything to Seton Hall. So we were just focused coming in. And we just knew that everything was going to start on defense. And then we just had to share the ball. ... And we just knew that we had to come out here and play our game and play together.”
That bad taste turned into motivation against Virginia Tech, with the team raining down an onslaught from deep on offense and maximum pressure on defense on their way to victory over the No. 15 Hokies. The win looked like a statement victory from the outside — an upset over a ranked opponent after a difficult loss earlier in the week — but from the inside, it was what they expected.
“I don’t think (the win) needed to be a statement for our program,” Penn State interim head coach Jim Ferry said after the game. “We’ve had a lot of shared experience, and a lot of winning that’s gone on here in the past three years. ... I don’t think we really care about what everybody else thinks. ... Our guys are more about each other. ... I think they all saw that we didn’t do what we were supposed to do and we didn’t really stick together in the Seton Hall game but we sure did tonight that’s (something I’m) really proud to see.”
The Nittany Lions’ mentality helped them turn the corner on what could have been a loss that starts a losing streak. They banded together — as they have through the turmoil they faced when Pat Chambers resigned in October — and found a way.
Tuesday night it was what could come to be a textbook win for the team. They’re going to be dependent on a defense that forces turnovers with pressure and an offense that shoots like crazy from deep with several players having the ability to step up as the team’s leading scorer.
That go-to scorer against the Hokies was Brockington. He attacked the rim with his quick first step and athleticism, blowing by Virginia Tech defenders and using his leaping ability to rise up and finish.
He used that same first step to create separation in the mid range and give himself an opening to shoot. And when those defenders backed off to prevent those looks, he rose up from beyond the arc and made those, too.
That kind of performance can come from anyone on any given night.
“Today I think we really played like we’re supposed to play,” Ferry said. “Our philosophy is that we’re an extra pass team. When we have all these shooters on the floor, and these guys that can make plays, it’s more about letting the ball find the shot, instead of guys having to hunt shots down. ... Izaiah obviously had a fantastic game so we kept trying to play through him a little bit.”
The by-committee approach gives the offense the kind of dynamism that keeps everyone on the court involved. There isn’t a single player who is guaranteed a certain number of points in a game. Sophomore Seth Lundy came into the game as the team’s leading scorer with 22.3 points per game. He left the matchup scoreless.
That ability for each player to step up is part of what makes the game enjoyable for the team.
“It’s so fun,” Brockington said. “Because then everybody is using their talents. When we play like that, we’re just really dynamic, we’re really hard to guard.”
The Penn State offense is fun for players to play in and its defense is miserable for opponents to deal with. That kind of formula could help the Nittany Lions keep the momentum rolling as they head into Big Ten play after going 3-1 in their nonconference slate.
This story was originally published December 9, 2020 at 1:15 AM.
