Penn State men’s basketball once again has back against the wall after loss to Rutgers
Cam Wynter sat at the postgame press conference and answered questions following Penn State’s 59-56 loss to Rutgers with a dejected look on his face. One question in particular elicited a surprised response.
A reporter started to ask Wynter about Jalen Pickett — the team’s undisputed best player and a potential All-American — not attempting a field goal in the second half. Before the entire query was out, the Penn State senior had a look of surprise come across his face before whispering “damn” under his breath.
Pickett’s lack of attempts and the surprise that came with it are a microcosm of what unfolded on the court at the Bryce Jordan Center Sunday night.
The Nittany Lions once again have their backs against the wall with no margin for error — but now have to bounce back from their worst loss of the season.
They led Rutgers by 19 points early in the second half and what unfolded thereafter was a complete collapse, but not one in the way the program has faced previously this season. This was not Penn State quitting on defense and giving up easy looks that lead to a double-digit run for the opponent in a short period of time.
This was different.
This was a death by a thousand cuts. The Scarlet Knights slowly but surely clawed their way back into the game and the Nittany Lions had little response — until they had no response at all.
“I thought our spirit went down a little bit,” Wynter said. “... We could’ve been a little more together, knowing we had a lead most of the game. We’ve just got to do a better job of sticking together during those times I think.”
Wynter didn’t pinpoint a specific moment when the spirits dropped, but it’s safe to assume it was likely during the final 9:16 of the game — when the team failed to make a single field goal attempt.
That dry spell offensively didn’t lead to a defensive collapse, but it was enough for Rutgers to take advantage of and earn the win. The offensive drought featured missed 3-pointers from sharpshooters like Andrew Funk and Seth Lundy, who went 1-of-18 from deep in the game, and Pickett’s shotless run.
Rather than point to what happened, Penn State head coach Micah Shrewsberry pointed to why it happened and accepted the blame for his team’s shortcomings.
“(Rutgers head coach) Steve Pikiell completely out-coached me tonight,” Shrewsberry said. “He coached circles around me tonight. We got out-coached and I’ve got to put our guys in better position to be successful if we want to win a game like this.”
Some of the issues, like repeatedly running offense through Pickett despite Rutgers’ aggression and success against him, fall at the blame of the head coach. Some of them fall at the players, like when unnecessary fouls are committed or the defense lapses.
But sometimes it’s just bad luck. Like when Lundy and Funk, who are No. 3 and 10 in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage and No. 1 and 2 when the sample is limited to players who attempt at least five per game, couldn’t make anything. It is easy to blame the player for shooting poorly, but Shrewsberry didn’t do that.
He chose to stick with the players who got him to this point in the season no matter the circumstances.
“He’s leading the Big Ten in 3-point percentage,” Shrewsberry said of Lundy. “I’m gonna trust him. I’m gonna trust him. The shots not falling but maybe there is the one that goes in. That’s what we’re gonna lean on. He’s a guy, he’s carried us, he’s been consistent all season and he’s carried us. I’m gonna ride those guys. I’m gonna go with them until the wheels fall off. ... They were doubling and the ball was just getting swung to him. It kept finding him, he just kept missing it. I’m OK with that. He was taking good shots for the most part.”
That’s not to say those shooters are blameless. Even Shrewsberry said he thought Lundy was rushing at times and his team may have come in overhyped. But there is plenty of blame to go around.
Sunday night Shrewsberry took the brunt of it. Maybe that provides the path of least resistance forward. Right or wrong, him taking accountability may allow his players to play more freely and with less pressure in two games that have immense consequences to close out the regular season.
Those games — at Northwestern and at home against Maryland — are now must-win. Earn those and this game is forgotten as an issue of what the team’s seed will be in the NCAA Tournament. But losing either means there’s a lot of work to be done in the Big Ten Tournament. Lose both and the program can kiss it goodbye.
No matter who is at fault, Penn State once again has its back against the wall.
And not much time to peel them off it.
