No. 15 Oregon outlasts Penn State, 82-81

Field Level Media|published: Sun 12th January, 18:33 2025

Jan 12, 2025; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Oregon Ducks center Nate Bittle (32) shoots the ball as Penn State Nittany Lions forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser (14) defends during the first half at Bryce Jordan Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Jackson Shelstad recorded 17 points and eight assists to guide No. 15 Oregon to an 82-81 road victory over Penn State on Sunday in University Park, Pa.

Shelstad, who did not record a turnover, was one of six Ducks to score in double figures. Keeshawn Barthelemy chipped in 15 points, while Jadrian Tracey had 13 and Nate Bittle pitched in 11 for Oregon (15-2, 4-2 Big Ten).

Freddie Dilione V scored a career-high 21 points to pace Penn State (12-5, 2-4), which also received solid contributions from Nick Kern (19 points, eight rebounds), Puff Johnson (15 points) and Zach Hicks (14 points, seven rebounds).

Down by nine points late in the second half, Oregon chipped away behind Barthelemy, Tracey and Kwame Evans Jr. Barthelemy's 3-pointer got the visitors within 74-71 with 3 1/2 minutes left, and then Evans' layup tied it at 76-76 with 2:24 to play.

Shelstad delivered the go-ahead jumper with 47 seconds left and Tracey tacked on two free throws with 18 seconds remaining. Hicks' 3-pointer got the Nittany Lions within a point with two seconds left, but the Ducks held on.

Evans was 4-for-4 from the field for his 10 points. TJ Bamba added 10 points and five rebounds for Oregon.

Penn State trailed by 14 late in the first half and by seven at halftime, but the team caught up at 49-49 about six minutes into the second half.

Shortly thereafter, the Ducks held a 56-53 lead before a jumper by Yanic Konan Niederhauser and four straight points by Johnson fueled a 15-3 run by the Nittany Lions. Dilione made a 3-pointer in the midst of that surge and then knocked down two foul shots to make it 68-59 with 6:34 left.

Johnson made a 3-pointer about two minutes into the game that gave Penn State an early 8-2 lead, but the momentum didn't last long. Shelstad and Bittle each made a 3-pointer during a 9-0 run by Oregon as the scoreboard quickly tilted in favor of the visitors.

The score remained close for several minutes before the Ducks used a 14-2 run to go in front 32-18. Penn State responded with five consecutive points, but Bittle made back-to-back buckets to push the lead to 36-23.

Oregon led 41-27 with less than three minutes left in the half before the hosts scored seven straight points to close the session.

--Field Level Media

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