Gophers hold off Penn State in overtime

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – No matter how far the Gophers men's basketball team fell in the Big Ten pecking order over the past week, there was no questioning it still had enough talent to be more competitive than recent blowout losses showed.

Nate Mason and Dupree McBrayer combined to score 49 points, Jordan Murphy had 22 points and 19 rebounds and the Gophers ended a three-game losing streak by outlasting Penn State 95-84 in overtime Monday in front of an announced 6,361 at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Mason finished with 25 points, including 14 in the first half. Murphy finished with his Division I-leading 18th double-double this season. McBrayer scored 24 points for the Gophers, who won for the first time at Penn State since 2014.

"To get a road win under adverse circumstances that we've had is terrific," coach Richard Pitino said about playing without suspended center Reggie Lynch and injured guard Amir Coffey for the fourth game in a row. "Our guys showed unbelievable heart."

Tony Carr, who tied a career high with 33 points for the Nittany Lions, drilled a three-pointer with 2.3 seconds left in regulation to tie the score at 74-74 and force overtime. Mike Watkins had 20 points and 11 rebounds for Penn State, but he fouled out in OT.

Gophers freshman Jamir Harris, who got his first career start on his 20th birthday, scored 10 of his career-high 16 points in the extra period to help seal the win.

"I thought we needed more scoring in there," Pitino said about starting Harris. "He can shoot the basketball. One of those rare moves that works."

So when Monday's game went into overtime, Mason pulled teammates aside and told them not to panic in another tough situation.

"I gathered the guys up and said, 'We have been through this before. We've hit adversity before. Let's respond now,' " he said. "We didn't lie down. We came back and played defense and got stops. That's what won this game."

It also helped that the Gophers got their confidence back offensively. They entered ranked 13th in overall shooting percentage (37.5) and 12th in three-point percentage (31.9) in Big Ten games. They shot 53 percent from the floor Monday, including 10-for-17 from beyond the arc.

Mason hit four threes in the first half to help the Gophers lead 41-37 at halftime. In the second half, Mason scored 12 points during a 14-3 run, including two free throws to extend it to a 59-46 lead. McBrayer's jumper kept the lead at 63-50 with 8:56 remaining.

The Nittany Lions weren't done, using a 17-4 run to tie it 67-67 after Watkins' steal and dunk with 3:37 to go. Mason only hit one of three free throws after being fouled beyond the arc with 1:09 left. Another Watkins basket gave Penn State a one-point lead, but Murphy answered to make it 72-71.

"We needed to have a good week this week to keep pushing forward and we were going to break through," Murphy said. "Today was a good indication of what we can be, even though we are shorthanded."