UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Rutgers (18-11, 9-9) fought back from a 21-point deficit to take a late lead, but No. 16/14 Penn State (21-7, 11-6) hit its only 3-pointer of the second half to conclude the scoring in a 65-64 decision Wednesday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center. The Scarlet Knights final shot was off the mark, as PSU escaped with the win despite being held to a single field goal over the game's final six minutes.
 
"We're resilient, we're tough and we'll bounce back," said Rutgers head coach Steve Pikiell. "We did that tonight. That game could have gotten ugly and it didn't. Our guys battled and stayed the course. We're playing elite teams, but you have to play a full 40 minutes."
 
The Nittany Lions were limited to 30 percent (9-of-30) shooting in the second half, while the Scarlet Knights made 18-of-35 shots (51.4%), to enable the dramatic finish.
 
Jacob Young was 5-of-9 from the field to score a team-high 13 points off the bench with five assists and three steals. Ron Harper Jr. contributed nine points, while Myles Johnson added eight points with a game-high 11 rebounds.
 
"Jacob came off the bench and gave us great energy, which we needed," said Pikiell when asked about the second half comeback. "I thought our bench gave us some energy. Myles also gave us some in the second half. I thought we played Rutgers basketball."
 
Penn State made six 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes and entered the locker room at the midpoint with a 42-24 advantage.
 
The Scarlet Knights opened the second half on an 11-3 run, making 5-of-8 shots. A 3-pointer from Paul Mulcahy cut the deficit to single digits at 49-40. Rutgers made 58 percent of its shots in the initial eight minutes of the second half, while limiting PSU to a 25 percent mark, to trim the gap to five points.

A 15-2 run brought RU to within a single point, before Penn State responded with a 9-0 burst, to push its lead back to 10 at 60-50.

Undaunted, Rutgers utilized a 12-2 push to tie the game, as Akwasi Yeboah swished a 3-pointer and had a steal resulting in a Geo Baker layup. Baker then hit a clutch step-back jumper to provide the Scarlet Knights their first and only lead with 38.4 seconds remaining.
 
"We fight," said Pikiell. "We're tough. We came back to take the lead, just couldn't finish it up with a defensive stop down the stretch."
 
Rutgers returns to action Tuesday evening in a 7 p.m. tip-off vs. No. 9/8 Maryland at the RAC. The game will be televised on BTN with Brandon Gaudin, Stephen Bardo and Andy Katz on the call. The Scarlet Knights' have won a nation's best 17 home games this season.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Rutgers out-scored Penn State36-22 in the paint, marking the fifth consecutive game that the Scarlet Knights have out-scored their opponent in the lane.
• Jacob Young scored in double figures for the 11^th time this season and 20^th time in his career. He had five or more assists for the third time this season and the fifth time in his career.
• Myles Johnson grabbed double-digit rebounds for the 12^th time this season and the 16^th time in his career.
• The Nittany Lions entered the game leading the Big Ten in steals (7.9) and ranked 18th nationally in blocks (5.0). PSU was limited to five steals and three blocks.
• Rutgers had a starting lineup comprised of Geo Baker, Montez Mathis, Ron Harper Jr., Akwasi Yeboah and Shaq Carter for the fourth straight game.

POSTGAME QUOTES
 
Head Coach Steve Pikiell

Opening Statement: "That's a tough game on the road here. Pat's done a great job, that's a really good basketball team. But I love my team too. We fight. We're tough. We came back to take the lead, just couldn't finish it up with a defensive stop down the stretch."

On the final offensive possession: "You are going to have to make plays at that time in the game. They went and jumped Geo. I thought Akwasi had a good look at it. I didn't like the defensive stop right before it, that's what cost us the game you have to get out and contest. He can shoot the ball. And he hadn't made many threes so give him credit, he made a big play at the end. You get a chance to counter with it. I love Akwasi, he said 'coach I was teeing that up', and I like that confidence."

On overcoming a large deficit: "We just got down a lot. I didn't like our energy. We had a great practice too yesterday. We just didn't get off to a good start and they played with tremendous energy in the first half. You can't spot them points like that on the road. To be 21 points down and come back to take the lead is unbelievable. This team had great energy to get back into the game, but you have to play better than that against a ranked team."

On the locker room postgame: "It's a tough game. These guys are tough. I love my team. We're resilient, we're tough and we'll bounce back. We did that tonight. That game could have gotten ugly and it didn't. Our guys battled and stayed the course. We're playing elite teams, but you have to play a full 40 minutes. You certainly can't allow leads like that."

On the comeback: "We played with great energy. Held them without a field goal for a long stretch. Jacob came off the bench and gave us great energy, which we needed. I thought our bench gave us some energy. Myles in the second half gave us some. I thought we played Rutgers basketball. To their credit, they are good and they took away things we wanted to do."
 
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