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Game preview: Penn State at Ohio State
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
When: 8 p.m.
Where: Schottenstein Center, Columbus
Extras
TV: ESPN Plus (none locally)
Radio: WING-AM (1410)
Records: OSU (24-3, 12-1 Big Ten); Penn State (10-15, 1-11)
Series: Ohio State leads, 19-12
| Probable starters | |||||
| Ohio State | Pos | Ht | Yr | Ppg | |
| Jamar Butler | G | 6-2 | Jr. | 8.5 | |
| Mike Conley | G | 6-1 | Fr. | 10.1 | |
| Ivan Harris | F | 6-7 | Sr. | 8.8 | |
| Greg Oden | C | 7-0 | Fr. | 15.5 | |
| Daequan Cook | G | 6-5 | Fr. | 11.9 | |
| Penn State | Pos | Ht | Yr | Ppg | |
| Jamelle Cornley | F | 6-5 | So. | 14.1 | |
| Milos Bogetic | F | 6-10 | So. | 4.3 | |
| Ben Luber | G | 6-0 | Sr. | 5.7 | |
| Danny Morrissey | G | 6-3 | So. | 10.2 | |
| Geary Claxton | G-F | 6-5 | Jr. | 16.4 | |
About Penn State
The Nittany Lions have lost 11 straight. But they showed they could play with Ohio State in a 64-62 home loss last week. This game concludes a five-game set in which Penn State played OSU and Wisconsin twice. Geary Claxton, Jamelle Cornley, David Jackson and Mike Walker all played well against the Buckeyes. In Columbus, Penn State must play even better to have any shot of making it a contest.
Buckeye facts
Tennessee, Michigan State and Penn State all have had a shot in the final seconds to defeat Ohio State. The first two were good teams, but OSU's near-collapse at Penn State on Feb. 14 caused OSU coach Thad Matta to shake some things up. One of those moves was starting Daequan Cook instead of Ron Lewis, and Lewis responded with 16 points. That starting spot is up in the air. OSU, No. 1 in the coaches poll and No. 2 in AP, put its foot down against Minnesota. Matta would like a similar performance before Wisconsin calls on Sunday.
Matta's take
"Our guys have a great realization that we're not even close to the end of the season. As a coach, I think that's part of your job ... finding ways to create an environment that is conducive to motivating your team and getting your team better and continuing to dwell on things that maybe you're not doing well and not really allowing your guys to relax." — Thad Matta, OSU coach
