Wednesday night is a battle of two teams who have underachieved so far in 2014-15, as the Penn State Nittany Lions take on the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing, MI for their first and only meeting of the season.

The season started out great for the NIttany Lions, as they went an impressive 12 – 1 over their 13-game non-conference schedule. They scored 5th place in the Charleston Classic back in November, which was a sign of things to come for the program throughout the rest of non-conference play.

Their only loss before Big Ten play started was in the opening round of the Charleston Classic, a double-overtime loss to the Charlotte 49ers.

After the loss, Penn State won seven straight games, all by single-digit margins. While the games were close at the end, a win in a win, and it looked like the team was building more and more confidence with each victory.

Big Ten play started on December 31st against Wisconsin, and the Nittany Lions haven’t been the same team since. They lost to the Badgers, 89 – 72, and have since lost their next four contests to enter Wednesday night on a five-game losing streak. Their most recent loss was an 84 – 77 overtime loss to the Purdue Boilermakers.

For Penn State (12 – 6, 0 – 5), four of their five losses in Big Ten play have been by single-digit margins, which shows the team is competitive. However, finding themselves on the wrong end of close games has to deflate their confidence levels, especially since they were coming out on top of the close games in non-conference play.

The road doesn’t get any easier for the Nittany Lions, as they enter the Breslin Center on Wednesday night as 13-point underdogs to Tom Izzo and the Michigan State Spartans.

The struggles that the Spartans have gone through in their non-conference portion of the 2014-15 season have been beaten to death, and everyone is aware of them by now. For the sake of the preview, their play in Big Ten contests is what is worth looking at as they go for their fourth win on Wednesday night.

The Michigan State Spartans (12 – 6, 3 – 2) have already been swept by the Maryland Terrapins in the season series. Their most recent game was a 75 – 59 loss on the road to the Terrapins. However, they have scored impressive wins over the Indiana Hoosiers and the Iowa Hawkeyes, which should serve as confidence boosters going forwards for the rest of the season.

The last time out on their home floor, the Spartans struggled to take down the Northwestern Wildcats. The Spartans needed overtime to come away with the 84 – 77 win, and overcome a hot-shooting Northwestern team.

The Spartans have silenced some of their doubters with their play in Big Ten action, and enter Wednesday night as double-digit favourites. However, as the trend always is in conference play, never count anyone out. The Penn State Nittany Lions could come into East Lansing and shock the Spartans.

Players to Watch

On the Penn State sideline, the offense runs through senior guard D.J. Newbill. The 6’4’’, 210-pound guard out of Philadelphia, PA is the only Nittany Lion player to average double-digit points per game this season. Newbill is averaging an impressive 21.7 points per game to go along with 4.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. Over his five conference games, he has elevated his point per game production to 22.4 points per contest. Newbill elevates his game in big match-ups, which is great news for the Nittany Lions as they get prepared for the Spartans. If Newbill can keep up his strong level of play, and receive some support in terms of secondary scoring, then Penn State has a great chance to pull off the upset victory.

On the Spartans’ sideline, junior guard Denzel Valentine is the team’s top scorer this season. Earlier this season, Tom Izzo described Valentine as “the best player they have on their roster”, and he has lived up to the billing so far this year. The 6’5’’ junior guard out of Lansing, MI is averaging 13.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game this season. He has an impact on both ends of the floor for the Spartans this season, and his play has been a big part of the team’s overall success this year. He is shooting 44.3% from behind the three point line, and 88.2% from the free throw line. He is one of the team’s best shooters, which will be a key factor in Wednesday’s game. The Spartans live and die by the three pointer, so if Valentine can get hot from the field, the Spartans should win in a laugher.

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This is a must-win game for both teams, as they are both coming off a loss in their last outing. The Nittany Lions are still searching for their first win of 2015, and their first win in Big Ten play this season. The Spartans, on the other hand, are looking to stay in contention near the top of the conference, and score their fourth conference win of the season.

Both teams should give it all they have on Wednesday night inside the Breslin Center, so be sure to check it out at 7pm EST!

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About the author
Tyler Bennett
I am a Canadian who writes about U.S. college sports...ironic, right? With an undergrad degree in Sport Management, I thought it was only fitting that I write about sports. As a Canadian, I spell words funny, use eh excessively, and apologize profusely, so I am sorry in advance.