Lady Lions Close in on Big 10 Title
What a difference 24 hours makes. On Monday night, our Penn State Nittany Lions held a halftime lead only to blow the game in the second half and fall to Purdue. That deflating lost dropped the men’s team record in the Big Ten to a dismal 0-10 (also their 10th straight defeat). But the next night, in that same Bryce Jordan Center, the Lady Lions entered the arena looking to establish a commanding lead in the Big Ten conference against Purdue’s women’s team. Thanks to their 69-61 victory in a battle for first place over the 13th ranked Boilermakers, it is no longer too soon to start looking at possible Big Ten clinching scenarios.
Looking down the line, it appears the Big Ten will be a two horse race at the most: PSU (8-1 Big Ten) and Purdue (7-2 Big Ten). Penn State’s remaining schedule includes 4 road games and 3 home games. Their toughest tests seem to be @ Nebraska in the season finale (March 3rd) and vs. Michigan State (February 10th). Purdue’s schedule is the opposite, as they have 4 home games with just 3 home games left. While this would appear to give the advantage to Purdue, it is important to note that PSU has already played two of the teams it will face in road rematches (Nebraska and Minnesota) and they have beaten them by an average of 13.5 points. Furthermore, they have already bested the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing by 21 points.
Since Purdue and Penn State will not meet again in the regular season, Penn State is the only team in the conference that controls its own destiny (which means that if they win out, they will clinch sole possession of the 2012-13 Big Ten Regular Season Title). I personally do not see them slipping up at home, where they are undefeated this season, and do believe that Penn State will go on the road for their last 2 games of the year with regular season championship at stake. Whether they pull it out is another matter altogether. Stay tuned.
Looking down the line, it appears the Big Ten will be a two horse race at the most: PSU (8-1 Big Ten) and Purdue (7-2 Big Ten). Penn State’s remaining schedule includes 4 road games and 3 home games. Their toughest tests seem to be @ Nebraska in the season finale (March 3rd) and vs. Michigan State (February 10th). Purdue’s schedule is the opposite, as they have 4 home games with just 3 home games left. While this would appear to give the advantage to Purdue, it is important to note that PSU has already played two of the teams it will face in road rematches (Nebraska and Minnesota) and they have beaten them by an average of 13.5 points. Furthermore, they have already bested the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing by 21 points.
Since Purdue and Penn State will not meet again in the regular season, Penn State is the only team in the conference that controls its own destiny (which means that if they win out, they will clinch sole possession of the 2012-13 Big Ten Regular Season Title). I personally do not see them slipping up at home, where they are undefeated this season, and do believe that Penn State will go on the road for their last 2 games of the year with regular season championship at stake. Whether they pull it out is another matter altogether. Stay tuned.
