Sloppy play and a seemingly endless amount of whistles told the story of this one.
The sound of the referee whistle is going to be etched in the head of Wildcat fans for a while after this one.
In the opening bout of the new year, Northwestern (10-4, 1-2 B1G) traveled to Happy Valley to take on Penn State (12-2, 2-1 B1G) but suffered a gut-punch loss as Penn State was able to squeak out an 84-80 victory in a game that featured 11 ties and 14 lead changes.
The story of this game cannot be told without discussing the officiating, as a crucial review with under 10 seconds to go took points off the board for Northwestern that would have tied the game. But the entire evening was filled with whistles, as several Northwestern players found themselves in foul trouble. The Wildcats were called for 30 personal fouls, gifting the Nittany Lions 45 free throw attempts to Northwestern’s 21.
Leading the way despite the losing effort was Brooks Barnhizer, who posted his seventh-straight double-double, and nearly clawed into triple-double territory with a final line of 20 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Nick Martinelli added 18 points and the Wildcats got a surprising 25 points off the bench as a result of players being in foul trouble.
For Penn State, Zach Hicks led the way with 20. Ace Baldwin Jr. added seven assists and 17 points of his own, 15 of which came from the free throw line. The Nittany Lion defense also stymied a Northwestern offense that came into the night top-10 in the nation in protecting the ball, forcing 16 Wildcat turnovers.
Off the initial tip, Northwestern’s strategy was clear: shoot from deep. Each of the first four shots from the Wildcats was from deep, but they couldn’t find the bottom of the net. For the second consecutive game, Northwestern started slow as the Nittany Lions jumped out to an 8-0 lead before a Martinelli floater put Northwestern on the board.
Throughout the early stages of the game, the Wildcats were uncharacteristically sloppy. Penn State forced five turnovers against the best ball-protection team in the Big Ten and had four offensive rebounds just five minutes into the contest. In addition, Northwestern could not stay out of foul trouble. Penn State reached the bonus before the 12-minute mark as both Ty Berry and Jalen Leach were forced to sit with two fouls apiece. Despite all the miscues, the Wildcats trailed by only four as the teams took a 12-8 score into the under-12 timeout.
After the break, Northwestern’s leading scorer finally found his stroke, sinking a three to cut the lead to one. As Penn State continued to play less-than-graceful basketball, Northwestern snagged its first lead of the day on a Nicholson make off a Martinelli feed that made the score 14-12. A KJ Windham three put the exclamation point on an 11-2 run.
Around the halfway point of the first half, a rarity occurred: Brooks Barnhizer sat on the bench. Thanks to two early fouls on Barnhizer, Windham, Justin Mullins and Angelo Ciaravino were forced onto the court, but Northwestern’s depth responded and gave the ‘Cats quality minutes, including some surprising scoring. On the other end, the Nittany Lions couldn’t get out of their own way, giving away the ball nine times in the first 12 minutes of action.
K.J. Windham cleans up for @NUMensBball #B1GMBBall on Peacock pic.twitter.com/6qyoCPEmPt
— Big Ten Men’s Basketball (@B1GMBBall) January 3, 2025
The fouls continued to be a major storyline. After Berry picked up his third foul, four of Northwestern’s five starters were on the bench, with only Martinelli holding down the fort. This allowed for a 9-0 Penn State run, enabling the Nittany Lions to sprint out to a 28-22 lead. A Barnhizer make stopped the bleeding, but the home team continued to look energized after finding rhythm on offense.
In the waning minutes before the half, Penn State’s offense continued to surge while the defense forced Northwestern miscues. In the final minute, Freddie Dilione V put Ciaravno on a poster, but received a technical for taunting, allowing Northwestern to collect some free points. But the freshman was unfazed, sinking a three on the other end as his breakout half continued. By the whistle, the scoreboard read 37-34.
In some ways, it was a nightmare first half. Leach and Berry had a combined two points. Martinelli shot just 20% from the field and the team was 26.7% from deep. Berry, Leach, Barnhizer, Mullins and Ciaravino all found themselves in foul trouble. And the usually trusty Wildcats had 10 first-half turnovers.
Despite all of that, Northwestern controlled the pace of play in the first half and only trailed by three going into the break, in large part thanks to 17 points off the bench, an impressive number for a team with questions about its depth. Ciaravino was a revelation, leading all Northwestern scorers with eight points in his nine minutes of play.
Out of the break, the foul trouble continued as Matt Nicholson allowed for two and-one opportunities in the first minute of the second half. A good sign for the ‘Cats was Leach’s newfound aggressiveness. The point guard scored four points in the first 90 seconds of the second frame after a quiet first half.
Just like in the first half, Northwestern was the victim of a quick whistle, tacking on five fouls before the clock had lost three minutes. And just like in the first half, Northwestern’s bench kept coming up big. Justin Mullins’ and-one reverse layup tied the game at 45. On the next possession, a gorgeous feed from Mullins sent Martinelli to the line and gave Northwestern its first lead of the half.
Mullins picked up his fourth foul on a questionable call on a three-point shot, which both put Penn State in the bonus and allowed the Nittany Lions to retake the lead 50-49. Ciaravino recorded his fourth shortly after. With one freshman seated, the other stood up in a big way with Windham draining his second long-ball of the evening to knot the score once again at 52 points apiece.
A Barnhizer score, steal and assist gave Northwestern a quick four points as the two sides continued to trade blows and ping-pong the lead. Berry’s fourth foul put Penn State into the double bonus with over 11 minutes remaining in the game. Northwestern’s offense continued to make plays, but with Penn State living at the line, the Wildcats were unable to separate on the scoreboard.
After the under-12, a gripping battle commenced: Brooks Barnhizer against the Penn State free throw shooters. Barnhizer had nearly tallied a triple-double by the under-eight mark, while the Nittany Lions had taken 38 free throws by that point. Behind a Zach Hicks triple, the home team walked into the break with a 67-65 lead.
A pair of Barnhizer free throws tied it up, but Baldwin made attempts 39 and 40 for Penn State to retake the small advantage before Martinelli evened it once again. A steal led to a Barnhizer make in transition but both teams refused to give the other side any cushion. The Nittany Lion guards continued to give Northwestern’s perimeter defenders nightmares and the Wildcats failed to adjust, continuing to foul Penn State’s shifty guards and sending them to the charity stripe.
With just over five minutes to go, Berry finally made a dent in the box score, draining a wide-open three to give NU a 75-73 lead. Coming off a season-high 23-point game, it was shocking to see Berry’s first points 36 minutes into the game, but it was better late than never for the visiting Wildcats. But the home team responded, going on a 7-0 run, aided by a questionable missed goal tend on a Martinelli shot and missed travel on Penn State’s ensuing possession.
Penn State held all the momentum and a five-point lead, so was do-or-die for the Wildcats with three minutes to play. Nicholson was gifted a trip to the line on a close call but was only able to convert one of his two free attempts. An errant pass gave the Wildcats a much-needed turnover followed by a gorgeous spinning layup from Barnhizer to close the gap back to two.
The Nittany Lions responded with a Nick Kern Jr. alley-oop to re-extend the lead to four. With just over a minute remaining, Martinelli’s floater was swatted away and the ‘Cats were unable to convert but a quick block and foul granted Martinelli a trip to the line with 49 seconds on the clock. Northwestern’s second star came up clutch, sinking both to bring the score to 82-80.
A timely missed three ensured the ‘Cats would have a chance to tie or take the lead with 23 seconds left on the game clock.
Out of the timeout, the ‘Cats set up a gorgeous play for Berry, who missed a chance for the lead. But Leach crashed the boards to secure the offensive rebound and put the ball back up. There was confusion regarding whether Leach was blocked or it was a goaltending call, prompting a lengthy review with under six seconds remaining in the game.
After the review, the refs took Northwestern’s points off the board despite what would have been an easy make for Barnhizer off the Leach miss. Northwestern did retain possession and an extra second was added to the clock.
After the long break, the ball went to Matt Nicholson, who got lost under the basket and turned the ball over, effectively ending Northwestern’s hopes of a massive road victory. Baldwin made another two free throws to make it official. The Wildcats didn’t have a chance to answer, and after some questionable offensive decision-making and even more questionable officiating, they fell on the road, 84-80.
Northwestern will be back in action on Sunday, January 5, as the Wildcats continue their road trip by taking on No. 20 Purdue in West Lafayette. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. central time.