Final from University Park. pic.twitter.com/fcolYnUKBj
— Minnesota Men's Basketball (@GopherMBB) January 29, 2015
D.J. Newbill scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half helping Penn State hold off the Gopher men’s basketball team 63-58 in Happy Valley on Wednesday night.
The Penn State victory snapped a streak of five straight losses to Minnesota, and was the Nittany Lions second straight Big Ten win.
Minnesota dug themselves too big of a hole in the first half, as Penn State built a 13 point lead on the hot shooting of Payton Banks. He came off the bench to score nine in the first half, making 3-of-4 from behind-the-arc.
Penn State, which averages 10.3 assists per game, has 10 assists with 1:57 remaining in the first half. #Gophers
— Joe Perovich (@JoePerovich) January 29, 2015
Banks and Logan Thorpe each finished with nine.
On the other hand, the Gophersstruggled – shooting just 30 percent from the floor. Andre Hollins had 11 of Minnesota’s first 23 points.
But Minnesota battled back early in the second half, claiming their first lead since early in the game at 46-45 with around 8:30 to play.
That’s when Newbill took over. He had 10 rebounds to go with his 12 points and also dished out five assists.
Minnesota had one last chance. They were down 61-58 with less than a minute to play, but turned it over as Hollins tried to make a move to the hoop. That allowed Penn State to push the lead back to two posessions.
Hollins finished with 17 to lead the Gophers, but he didn’t have much help. He was the only player in double figures.
Minnesota drops to 1-6 in games decided by five points or less this season.
The Gophers (13-9, 2-7) host Nebraskas on Saturday at Williams Arena.
