COLUMBUS, Ohio — E.J. Liddell hit two free throws with 59.7 seconds left, Myreon Jones missed a floater in the final seconds that would've tied the game and No. 13 Ohio State survived a back-and-forth fight from visiting Penn State, 83-79, Wednesday at Value City Arena.
With Penn State ahead 79-77, Justice Sueing hit two free throws with 1:37 to play that tied the game, and after the Buckeyes stripped Seth Lundy of the ball, Liddell drew a foul on John Harrar on a jumper with 59.7 seconds and hit both free throws to give Ohio State an 81-79 lead.
It marked the fifth lead change in the final 3:13 of the game. Ohio State (13-4, 7-4 Big Ten) closed on a 6-0 run, erasing a second-half deficit that grew as high as eight points at one point.
Liddell led the Buckeyes, who trailed by five points with five minutes to play, with 22 points. Lundy finished with a game-high 26 for Penn State (5-7, 2-6).
Up 43-39 at the half, Ohio State opened the second with a CJ Walker 3-pointer, but it would be the high point for the Buckeyes. Penn State responded with a 10-0 run and took its first lead of the game with 15:21 left when Jones lofted a 3-pointer from the left corner, right in front of his team’s bench area, that fell through for a 49-46 lead.
Sueing answered with a three-point play to tie the game, and the teams would trade baskets before Penn State went ahead 55-53 with 13:40 to play on a pair of John Harrar free throws. The Nittany Lions lead would continue grow, reaching eight points at one point.
The Buckeyes would not score a basket that didn’t follow a Penn State make during the second half until E.J. Liddell scored in the paint with 5:29 to play to pull them within 71-68.
Leading 34-30, Ohio State pushed it to an 11-point lead with a 7-0 run late in the first half capped by a Walker full-court drive that ended with a three-point play with 2:18 remaining. The Buckeyes looked to have regained momentum, but the Big Ten’s best team at turning opponents over leaned into that strength to close the half with a flurry.
After a pair of Kyle Young free throws with 42.7 seconds left, Penn State’s Jamari Wheeler stole the ball from Sueing after the Buckeye had stripped Lundy seconds earlier. Wheeler scored off the turnover, and a few seconds later picked the pocket of Ohio State freshman guard Meechie Johnson Jr. and laid it in for an uncontested layup in the final seconds to pull the Nittany Lions within 43-39 at the half.
Wheeler’s two thefts came during the final 20 seconds of the half.
Ohio State had nine first-half turnovers, allowing Penn State to take a 14-2 advantage in points off turnovers. Wheeler’s personal run gave a boost to teammate Lundy, who had 17 first-half points, two shy of his Big Ten career high.
It all helped answer what had been a strong start for the Buckeyes, who opened the game with a 14-2 run during which Penn State shot two air-balls. The Buckeyes got a pair of early 3-pointers from Justin Ahrens, a high-flying three-point play by Young who dunked a Duane Washington Jr. 3-point miss while being fouled, and a three-point play from freshman Zed Key that resulted in his customary “finger guns” celebration.
At the half, Ahrens and Key led the team with nine points apiece.
Both Walker and Young fouled out.
