Late rally falls short in 76-74 OT loss at Penn St.

There was a point midway through the second half where it looked like the distraction caused by Jordy Tshimanga’s sudden departure had gotten to Nebraska’s players against Penn State on Friday night.

But trailing by as many as 16 points in the second half, the Huskers were able to rally back and send the game into overtime. The comeback would fall short in the end, however, as jumper by Tony Carr with 2.7 seconds left sealed a 76-74 victory for the Nittany Lions

While Nebraska’s ability to fight back and send the game into extra time was admirable, it didn’t lessen the sting one bit for head coach Tim Miles and his team.

The loss drops NU to 12-7 overall and 3-3 in Big Ten Conference play.

“It’s really disappointing that we come out with an opportunity to win a game like this and we just don’t come out with fire until we’re down 16 points midway through the second half,” Miles told the Husker Sports Network.

Glynn Watson carried the load to open the game, scoring Nebraska’s first seven points and making four of his first five shots from the field.

But the Huskers would hit a cold streak midway through the first half, going scoreless for nearly four minutes to allow Penn State to go on a 9-1 run and jump out to a 21-16 lead.

Five points off the bench from freshman Thomas Allen helped NU pull back to within 26-24 with just under three minutes to go in the half, but the Nittany Lions would close out on a 7-0 run from there to go into halftime up 33-24.

“We had the lead for like seven minutes of the first half, and then they just buried us for a whole length of time,” Miles said. “I called a timeout and I said, ‘Guys, one of two things is going to happen: one, we’re going to get embarrassed, or two, we’re going to decide to just play harder than these guys.”

Penn State would go on to extend that run to 13-0 through the first two minutes of the second half and eventually took its biggest lead of the night at 47-31 on a 3-pointer by Carr.

Isaac Copeland would try to answer by scoring 11 of Nebraska’s first 15 points after halftime and eventually cutting the deficit down to 47-39 with 14:24 left to play.

But once again, no one else would step up to carry the load, and NU hit another cold stretch by missing six of its next seven shots and falling back behind by 13 points with less than nine minutes remaining.

Watson knocked down a pair of free throws with 5:32 left for his first points of the second half to cut PSU’s lead to seven, and Copeland followed that up with 3-pointer to pull within 61-56 with just over four minutes to play.

Then, after missing his previous nine shots, Watson drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key to make it a two-point game. He added another free throw one possession later to get within 61-60 with three minutes on the clock.

Finally, with 2:04 remaining, Copeland knocked down a free throw to tie the game for the first time since the 10-minute mark of the first half at 63-63. A jumper by Watson with 1:27 left would tie it again at 65-65, and that score would hold into overtime.

Isaiah Roby got things going to start the extra period by scoring NU’s first five points and give his team a 70-68 lead with less than three minutes to play.

Penn State quickly reclaimed the lead on four straight points by Carr, but with 14 seconds on the clock, Anton Gill knocked down a clutch 3-pointer to tie it up at 74-74. It would be Carr and the Nittany Lions would get the last laugh on the final possession, however.

“For as many good things as we did, we did just enough to lose...” Miles said. “Just so many different things eat at you when you lose a close one.”

Watson and Copeland both led Nebraska with 21 points each, while Roby added 12 points, six rebounds and three assists off the bench. The Huskers only shot 36.8 percent from the field but did make nine 3-pointers on the night.

Lamar Stevens paced Penn State with a game-high 26 points, while Mike Watkins posted 20 points and 15 rebounds. Carr finished with 17 points on a dismal 5-of-21 shooting, but he came up with the biggest shots of the night in overtime.

Nebraska will return to action on Monday night when it plays host to Illinois for an 8 p.m. tip on BTN.

1. No update on Tshimanga's future with Nebraska

Before the game, Miles gave the latest on Tshimanga’s status with Nebraska.

Tshimanga did not travel with the Huskers to State College, Pa., and is rumored to be considering a mid-year transfer. He’s reportedly unhappy with his role this season and his development over the past season and a half.

In an interview with Kent Pavelka on the Husker Sports Network, Miles was asked about Tshimanga’s situation as things stand right now.

“He’s just trying to figure some things out on his own,” Miles said. “It’s an unfortunate situation. I don’t know how it’s going to play out, but at this time Jordy has my full support. He’s a great kid; his family are good people, so we’re dealing with everything you could imagine to be dealing with right now.

“We’ll hopefully have a resolution soon.”

Then Miles was asked if Tshimanga’s situation had been a distraction to Nebraska’s players as they try to get ready for an important Big Ten road game.

“I think guys are bummed out, disappointed, whatever, but they got to work,” Miles said. “It’s probably more of a distraction for Kenya (Hunter) and I and the assistants. But at the same time, I don’t think it’s much of a distraction for the players.”

2. NU's 1-3-1 pays off again

Nebraska was able finally to get its offense going midway through the second half, but it was the switch to the 1-3-1 zone around the same point that arguably played just as big of a part in the comeback.

Penn State’s offense came out blazing with a 14-7 run to open the second half, but when Miles went to his zone - a look that has worked quite well for NU this season - the Huskers suddenly responded with a 10-1 run of their own.

Miles admitted that he might have stuck with the 1-3-1 a bit too long, as his guards started easing up on contesting perimeter shots down the stretch which led to some open looks to PSU.

But the results are undeniable, and Miles himself called the defense “a game-changer.” With potentially even less low-post depth going forward without Tshimanga, look for Nebraska to use more zone than ever.

3. Questions surround Palmer's second-half benching

Questions were flying as the final minutes ticked away, and star guard James Palmer was planted firmly on Nebraska’s bench.

The Huskers’ leading scorer at 15.8 points per game, Palmer played a total of seven minutes in the second half and didn’t play at all in overtime.

Miles wasn’t asked directly about his decision to sit Palmer in favor of forward Jack McVeigh, who had been a coach’s DNP the past four games. Miles did allude to one player who “didn’t show up” to play well and said McVeigh gave them good defense during the second-half rally.

Palmer ended up with a season-low five points on just 1-of-9 shooting from the field, along with four rebounds, three assists, three fouls and a turnover.

It was far from the junior’s best night, but with the game on the line, it’s certainly a head-scratcher that NU didn’t have arguably its best scorer on the court.