Northwestern
Penn State
Wildcats Outlast Penn State In Double Overtime, 85-79
3/1/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 1, 2003
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EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) - Jitim Young scored 26 points and Aaron Jennings added 15, including 12 in the two overtime sessions, as Northwestern beat Penn State 85-79 Saturday at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Jennings' hook shot tied game at 76 with 2:10 left in the second extra period, and nearly a minute later he hit a free throw to give Northwestern (11-14, 3-11) a 77-76 lead. It was an advantage the Wildcats didn't relinquish.
Penn State's Brandon Watkins hit a 3-pointer with 8.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 65 and send it into the first overtime. He then made a running jumper in the lane with 6.3 seconds left in the first OT to force a second session.
Watkins -- a Chicago-area product -- finished with a career-high 31 points for Penn State (6-19, 1-13). Jan Jagla had 12 points and seven rebounds, and Sharif Chambliss and Aaron Johnson both had 11 points.
Northwestern's Jason Burke missed a 20-footer to win the game in regulation, and T.J. Parker was off on a 20-footer to win it in the first overtime.
Northwestern led 63-58 with 46.8 seconds left in regulation, but couldn't hold on to the lead. Jagla scored and after he missed a free throw, Chambliss had a follow basket to make it 63-62 with 31 seconds left.
Parker hit two free throws to push Northwestern's lead back to three, before Watkins tied it with his 3-pointer.
Young sparked a 15-3 Northwestern run in the second half. He hit a 3-pointer to give Northwestern a 39-36 lead with 14:29 left in the second half and had a layup giving Northwestern a 51-39 lead with 10:36 left, its largest of the game. Young scored 11 points during the span.
Penn State was able to come back and tie the game at 51, using a quick 10-0 run, and then took its first lead of the second half at 55-53 on two free throws by Brandon Cameron.
Northwestern coach Bill Carmody and Penn State's Jerry Dunn both wore bow ties honoring retiring Mount St. Mary's (Md.) head coach Jim Phelan.
NU is home for the final time of the 2002-03 season Wednesday night, hosting Ohio State at 6 p.m. CST. The regular season concludes next Saturday when the 'Cats are at Iowa.
SOME NOTES FROM SATURDAY'S GAME
* Northwestern defeated Penn State for the third consecutive time. It is NU's first three-game winning streak against a Big Ten opponent since beating Penn State three times in 1999.
* PSU's Brandon Watkins set career highs with 31 points, 13 field goals and 26 field-goal attempts. Watkins' 31 points are the most for a Nittany Lion this season, and four short of the Big Ten's high game this season.
* NU set Bill Carmody-era records for points (85), free throws made (27) and free throws attempted (45). PSU attempted more field goals (72) than any Carmody opponent at NU.
* PSU tied a season high with 79 points, and scored the most points in a losing effort since a 93-87 loss against Ohio State on March 3, 2001.
* Today marked the first overtime game for NU in the Bill Carmody era. The 'Cats are now 5-0 under Carmody when scoring more than 80 points (12-1 when scoring more than 70).
* The 'Cats are now 8-1 when shooting a better percentage from the field than their opponents.
* NU's last overtime game was a 61-55 loss to Michigan Feb. 26, 2000. The 'Cats last won a game in extra time Jan. 20, 1999 (62-60 over PSU).
* NU's last double-overtime game prior to Saturday was Dec. 29, 1990 (a 103-94 win over Dartmouth). PSU last played two extra frames Jan. 31, 1999, when the Nittany Lions fell to Indiana, 98-95.
* NU's seniors -- Winston Blake, Jason Burke and Aaron Jennings -- combined for 18 of NU's 20 points in overtime. Jennings had 12 of his 15 points in the game during the OT sessions.
* Burke also set a career high with seven assists, and tied his career best with eight rebounds.
* Forward Jitim Young led NU with 26 points, the most by a Wildcat in Big Ten play this season. That last time an NU player scored that many in a Big Ten game was Feb. 12, 2000, when Ben Johnson had 26 vs. Purdue.
* Young hit two three-pointers in the game, giving him 67 for his career which moved him into 10th place on NU's all-time list.
* Young also had four steals, giving him 145 which ties him with Art Aaron for third on NU's all-time list.
* NU won the rebounding battle, 45-44. The 'Cats are now 7-0 this season (3-0 in Big Ten games) and 19-4 under Carmody when grabbing more rebounds than their opponent.
