What went wrong in historic loss for Penn State basketball?

The losing streak for Penn State basketball has extended to four games after a shocking 76-67 loss to Bucknell Saturday afternoon. Bucknell entered the game just 2-7 and looked to be the perfect bounce-back opponent for Penn State to get back in the win column again. However, the Bisons came out swinging and were able to go on runs at the right times to take down the Nittany Lions.

Bucknell efficiency overshadowed sloppy play

Bucknell’s offense was operating at a high level all game, shooting 58% from the floor and 48% from deep as a team. The Bison did have 14 turnovers, but the efficiency of their offense was operating with offset that pretty easily.

Bucknell was led by senior guard Jack Forrest, who scored 23 points on 8-14 shooting from the field and 5-7 from deep. Forrest also added 3 steals on the other end. Sophomore center Noah Williamson had a big afternoon as well, scoring 21 points on 9-13 shooting from the field and 1-3 shooting from deep. 

Penn State couldn’t say the same

Penn State basketball just could not get the open shots to go down. The Nittany Lions shot 47% from the field and just 21% from deep. Many of the threes the Nittany Lions were taking were open, but there seemed to be a lid on the basket, with just four falling all day.

On the other end, the Penn State defense just seemed out of rhythm all game. The Nittany Lions surrendered too many open threes and shots at the rim and only got 6 steals on the day. Forcing turnovers is a staple of this defense, and when it doesn’t happen, it can get ugly like we saw today.

This is not good enough,” Penn State basketball coach Mike Rhoades said after the game. “It’s on me, number one. I’m not pointing fingers. It’s on me.”

“It’s not good enough, and some of it is going through adversity,” he continued. “When you have a bad play, you can’t be disengaged, or you can’t have less energy.”

Kayne Clary still appears to be banged up

It was a rough game for Kanye Clary, scoring just four points on 2-8 shooting. He struggled to get to his spot and convert, even when he did get there. It appears the injury he sustained in Orlando may still be impacting him.

On the bright side, it was a great showing from Qudus Wahab on offense. He scored 18 on 7-8 shooting and was a good source of scoring to keep the Nittany Lions afloat as the game progressed. 

Historic loss for Penn State basketball

This is one of the worst losses we have seen from the Penn State basketball program in a long time. Since KenPom was created in 1999, Penn State has never lost to a team ranked outside the top 300. That is, until today. Bucknell, with its 330 ranking, is the type of team you just have to take care of business against.

Penn State loses a buy game to Bucknell. The epitome of brutality.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) December 2, 2023

Penn State basketball has a lot of work to do as the Nittany Lions head into the first game of Big Ten play. The conference opener against Maryland will take place on Wednesday at 6 PM EST and be televised on Big Ten Network. 

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