Penn State will face Purdue in ‘David vs. Goliath’ matchup for Big Ten title

The Penn State Nittany Lions have been getting hot as of late — the Lions have now won five-straight games, are undefeated in March, and are gearing up for a colossal matchup against Purdue on Sunday. Without a doubt, Penn State’s game against the Boilermakers will be a true David vs. Goliath contest for this year’s Big Ten title.

Penn State basketball will face Purdue in Big Ten title matchup

Thus far in the Big Ten tournament, the Penn State Nittany Lions (22-12, 13-10 Big Ten) have taken down three of the conference’s top programs. On Thursday night, Penn State edged past Illinois; on Friday night, the Lions took down Northwestern in overtime; and on Saturday, Penn State basketball narrowly defeated Indiana. The Nittany Lions’ three Big Ten tournament wins are enough to get them into Sunday’s anticipated Big Ten title game matchup against Purdue.

Penn State-Purdue is a true David vs. Goliath matchup

From just about any angle, Penn State and Purdue are complete opposites. On Penn State’s side, you have an undersized, low-seed program that has not seen hardly any success in basketball ever. The Nittany Lions have benn unranked all year and were on the bubble at the beginning of this week.

On the other side, you have the high-powered Purdue Boilermakers — a program that has more Big Ten title banners hanging in  their gym than any team in the conference. Purdue has massive 7+ foot players like Zach Edey, and has been ranked among the nation’s best teams — including being the country’s No. 1 team — for the entire season. Purdue came into the Big Ten tournament as the sole winners of the regular season championship and will likely be a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the Big Dance later this month.

No one thought that Penn State basketball would make it anywhere near a Big Ten title in year two of Micah Shrewsberry. In less than 24 hours, the Nittany Lions could hang a prestigious banner from the rafters of the Bryce-Jordan Center. Penn State’s odds against the top 5-ranked Purdue Boilermakers may seem slim, but then again, the Lions were not expected to get this far in the first place. There’s a reason the game is played on the court instead of a stat sheet — now, it’s time for Shrewsberry and his Nittany Lions to bring home Penn State’s first Big Ten title.

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