Before Penn State fans sit down to enjoy Super Bowl Sunday, they still have one more obstacle to clear.
The Nittany Lions will host Michigan today at noon on the Big Ten Network looking to keep their four-game winning streak intact and their NCAA Tournament hopes afloat.
The Wolverines (13-10, 3-7) have had a rough go of it in conference play, losing seven of nine since beating Penn State back in January to open their conference slate. They have won two of their past three games, though, beating scuffling Michigan State and then Iowa before losing to Ohio State mid-week. Michigan handled Penn State in the first matchup by shooting a nifty 57% from the field on the afternoon.
The Lions (12-9, 5-5) are coming off a deflating loss at Illinois on Tuesday. Penn State was forced to deal not only with the Fighting Illini in that game, but travel concerns that forced them to bus nearly five hours from Evansville, Ind. to Champaign zapped their energy and left them vulnerable to a desperate Illinois team. A win against Michigan is a must if they're to stay in the NCAA Tournament field as ESPN's Joe Lunardi presently predicts in his latest Bracketology that they will.
For more on this game, head over to Black Shoe Diaries and check back here for live updates from the Bryce Jordan Center, including news on injured forward Jeff Brooks' status for the game.