Penn State got off to a really bad start and fell behind big against Virginia Tech, trailing by 16 midway through the first half.
But with 4 seconds left in the game, the Nittany Lions had the ball down just two with a chance to tie or win.
Penn State couldn't complete the comeback, though, and suffered its first loss of the season, 61-59, to Virginia Tech in the semifinals of the Charleston (S.C.) Classic.
The Lions got a 3-pointer from Myles Dread to pull within 59-56 with 1:37 to go. Andrew Funk then made a 3 with 41 seconds remaining to make it 61-59.
Virginia Tech missed a 3 with seconds left, and Jalen Pickett rebounded for Penn State. Instead of letting things play out, Micah Shrewsberry opted to call a timeout with 4 seconds left. Virginia Tech then followed with a timeout of its own.
The Lions inbounded near half court to Camren Wynter, who tried to drive in for a shot but lost the ball. Here's the sequence.
Penn State’s last possession… pic.twitter.com/2CmaIY5Nyb
— David Cunningham (@therealdcunna) November 18, 2022
It was ruled a turnover with 1 second left, and Virginia Tech ran out the clock.
Penn State (4-1) got off to a miserable start shooting the ball, hitting 3 of 15 and 0 of 6 from 3-point land, and Virginia Tech jumped out to a 22-6 lead. The Lions clawed back the rest of the day and pulled within two points on several occasions, but could get no closer.
Funk led Penn State with 21 points, and Dread had 15 off the bench. Pickett was held to nine points. The Lions finished 11 of 30 from 3, and used the deep shot to fight back, but the slow start put them into too big of a hole.
Penn State has one more game left in the tournament. The Lions will play Sunday at 6 p.m. against the loser of Colorado State vs. Charleston.
Virginia Tech improved to 5-0 and advanced to the tournament championship game.
WHAT IT MEANS
This would have been a terrific win for Penn State if it could have gotten it, with Virginia Tech at No. 26 in the KenPom rankings. Such a win would have helped the Lions' resume down the stretch when it comes to NCAA Tournament considerations. Penn State came in at No. 34 in the KenPom rankings.
So, the Lions won't get any tangible benefit from the game in terms of their resume. But coming back the way they did against a really good Hokies team and then having a shot to win the game will certainly help this Penn State team in late-game situations down the road.
This was a strong showing by the Lions, and if they play like this every night, they will indeed pick up some big wins along the way.
THE ESSENTIALS
