Penn State wasn't given much of a chance to beat No. 1 Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship game today, but at halftime, the Nittany Lions are right in the game, down six at 29-23.
As usual, Talor Battle is pacing the Penn State offense with 10 points on 3-8 shooting including 2-5 from beyond the 3-point line. He also has a team-high four rebounds. Jeff Brooks has seven points in the early going, but has only one rebound. He's the Nittany Lions leading rebounder on the season, so he'll have to pick it up.
Jon Diebler, a Penn State killer, has dominated the game for the Buckeyes once again. He leads Ohio State with 10 points, the last three of which came on a dagger of 3-point shot at the first half buzzer to push the Ohio State lead from three to six heading into the break. William Buford has six points for the Buckeyes and freshman star Jared Sullinger has six points to go with a game-high six rebounds.
The game is being played very much at Penn State's pace. The Lions have managed to slow things down and limit the possessions. The Buckeyes are just making more shots as you'd expect the No. 1 team in the land to do. We'll see if it holds up in the second half.