Roundball Preview: No. 4 Ohio State vs. Penn State

Penn State coach Patrick Chambers and guard Tim Frazier celebrate the team's 54-52 victory over Illinois in an NCAA college basketball game in State College, Pa., Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. (AP Photo/Andy Colwell)

Fourth-ranked Ohio State returns to the friendly confines of Value City Arena for the first of four home games in a span of five as the Buckeyes host Penn State, Wednesday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET, and the contest will be televised on BTN.

The Nittany Lions, who have lost four out of the last five games, enter Wednesday’s tilt with a 10-11 overall record, are 1-6 on the road this season, and are 2-6 in Big Ten play. Currently, Penn State has a Rating Percentage Index (RPI) of 126 with a strength of schedule of 45 and the Nittany Lions are 2-7 against the RPI top 50.

Offensively, Penn State is the worst shooting team among the 74 programs from the six BCS conferences and are 329th overall in the NCAA at 38.7 percent from the field. The Lions are also 11th in the Big Ten and 281st overall in the NCAA scoring just 62.9 points per game.

The lone Penn State player that averages in double figures is 6-foot-1 junior guard Tim Frazier, who pours in 18.0 points per game while shooting 40.7 percent from the floor, but is only knocking down 27.6 percent of his shots from beyond the arc. Frazier also leads the team in rebounds (5.0), assists (6.4) and steals (2.3) per game.

In their last game on Sunday, Penn State held a 29-27 lead at halftime after holding Indiana to 40.9 percent shooting from the field and 2-of-7 from three-point range in the opening period. But Indiana hit its first four triples to start the second half to fuel an 18-6 run to grab a 45-35 advantage after Matt Roth’s trey with 13:06 remaining in the game and never looked back as the Nittany Lions were dealt a 73-54 defeat at Assembly Hall in Bloomington.

Frazier led Penn State with 21 points on 7-of-18 shooting from the field while walk-on Nick Colella, a 6-foot-3 junior guard, added a career-high 11 points.

Against Indiana, the Nittany Lions shot just 34.0 percent (17-50) from the field and were 4-of-17 (23.5%) from three-point range. The Hoosiers connected on 53.3 percent (24-45) from the floor and were 7-of-16 (43.8%) from beyond the arc.

Ohio State, on the other hand, has won four of their last five games and are 17-3 overall, 14-0 in games played at home (Value City Arena & Nationwide Arena), and are 5-2 in the Big Ten. At press time, Ohio State is ninth in the RPI with strength of schedule of 29, and the Buckeyes are 4-3 against teams in the RPI top 50.

In the last game, Ohio State laid to rest any road woes by demolishing Nebraska, 79-45, at the Devaney Center, Saturday night, as three Buckeyes scored in double figures led by William Buford’s 15 points.

It did take awhile for Ohio State to get it into gear as they trailed Nebraska 8-5 with 15:44 left in the first half. But Aaron Craft’s three-pointer sparked a 13-0 run as the Buckeyes shutout the Cornhuskers over a span of six minutes, three seconds that essentially put the home team away.

The Buckeyes held a 36-20 advantage at the break and continued to expand their lead in the second half.

Along with Buford’s 15 points, Thomas added 14 to go along with a team-high six rebounds. Jared Sullinger also added 14 points and five boards in 26 minutes of action.

For the game, Ohio State shot 44.1 percent (26-59) from the field and were 8-of-21 (38.1%) from beyond the arc.

Defensively, the Buckeyes held Nebraska to just 29.5 percent (13-44) from the floor and were 3-of-17 (17.6%) from three-point range. OSU also forced a whooping 27 turnovers while only committing 10.

With Michigan’s 66-64 win over Purdue on Tuesday night, Ohio State now sits in tie for second place with Michigan State, one-half game behind the Wolverines. With a win over Penn State, the Buckeyes will face “That School Up North” for sole possession of first place in the Big Ten this Sunday at Value City Arena. Tip-off is scheduled 1:00 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on your local CBS affiliate.

No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes (17-3, 5-2 Big Ten)	Penn State Nittany Lions (10-11, 2-6 Big Ten)