Playing on the road as a 25-plus-point Vegas underdog without your best player is typically a recipe for disaster. Penn learned that the hard way roughly this time last year against Houston when star guard Clark Slajchert suffered a season-ruining ankle sprain in an 81-42 beatdown.
By those standards, the Quakers’ Sunday trip to the Bryce Jordan Center to face Penn State was a (relative) success. Despite being without the services of junior wing Ethan Roberts, Penn went toe-to-toe with the Nittany Lions for roughly 25 minutes in an 86-66 defeat.
The Quakers (4-9) went to the locker room down just 34-31 at halftime and were within two points of Penn State (11-2) after senior big man Nick Spinoso bounced in a three-pointer from the left wing to make it a 38-36 game with 17:40 to go in the game. The Nittany Lions responded with an extended 13-3 run to push their advantage to double digits and built a bigger lead from there.
Penn State big man Yanic Konan Niederhauser scored five points in the game-deciding run. He finished with a 19-point, 15-rebound double-double.
What could Penn fans take away from a respectable showing against an NCAA Tournament contender?
The Red and Blue can’t withstand an extended Ethan Roberts absence.
Penn’s athletic department said that Roberts missed Sunday’s game with an illness and that he did not travel with the team to Penn State.
Without Roberts on the floor, Spinoso became the focal point of Penn’s offense and the primary initiator of the team’s actions. The forward finished two rebounds shy of a double-double but committed nine turnovers, a career high.
Part of that was due to Penn State’s superior athletes clogging up passing lanes that would normally be open for Spinoso, but part of it could also be chalked up to him often being the Quakers’ only legitimate playmaking option on the floor.
Penn’s Ivy campaign was torpedoed when Slajchert missed the first six games of conference play. Hopefully Roberts is good to go on Jan. 11.
Michael Zanoni stepped up big-time.
Zanoni, in his third consecutive start, had the best day of his collegiate career on Sunday.
The junior transfer from Mercer poured in a career-high 27 points and drained seven three-pointers on 12 attempts. The most impressive of those long distance shots came with 5:13 left in the first half, when Zanoni drained a three from beyond NBA range while taking a foul from Penn State’s D’Marco Dunn.
Zanoni converted the four-point play opportunity and gave Penn a 24-23 lead. The wing has come into his own as a spot-up and standstill shooter and deserves to hold onto his starting role as Ivy play progresses.
The frontcourt got outmuscled.
If one number best explains why Penn lost on Sunday, it’s the foul disparity: The Quakers committed 24 fouls, while the Nittany Lions were charged for just 12.
Penn never really had an answer for Konan Niederhauser and was frequently shuffling players in and out of the lineup as both freshman Bradyn Foster and sophomore Augie Gerhart dealt with foul trouble.
The Quakers also gave up 14 offensive boards to Penn State and wound up with a -12 rebound margin. It was another reminder of some of the physical deficits this team faces at times.
I am tired of Earth. These Quakers. I am tired of being caught in the tangle of their offense.