Feb. 16, 2000
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - Joe Crispin had 28 points and went 6-of-10 from three-point range as the Nittany Lions ended a three-game losing streak by defeating the Wildcats 73-64 Wednesday.
Titus Ivory added 15 points for Penn State (13-9, 5-6), which ended its previous three-game skid this year with a 33-point victory over Northwestern Jan. 13.
Tavaras Hardy led the Wildcats (5-19, 0-11 Big Ten) with 16 points, while Ben Johnson had 15.
With No. 6 Michigan State, No. 7 Ohio State and No. 25 Purdue among their last five opponents and the post-season looming, the Lions needed the victory.
Northwestern started by jumping out to a 9-3 lead, but they trailed 33-21 after shooting 30 percent. They fell behind 44-25 early in the second half after Crispin hit a three-point shot, and Tyler Smith followed with two more.
The Wildcats shot 61 percent in the second half, but didn't cut the lead to single digits until the end. Even the 3-pointer abandoned the Wildcats, who lead the Big Ten with 7.2 three-point shots per game. Against Penn State they made 3 of 10.
Jarrett Stephens had only six points for Northwestern, his first single-digit performance of the season.