UNIVERSITY PARK, PA ? Down by one with the ball on the final possession, the University of Hartford men's basketball team came up just short against Penn State University, 56-55, Wednesday night at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Senior Alex Zimnickas pulled down a huge defensive rebound with 30 seconds to play to give the Hawks a final chance at taking out the first Big Ten opponent in school history. After calling a timeout with 12.3 seconds remaining, freshman Joe Zeglinski forced up the potential game-winning shot. The attempt fell short, and though sophomore Michael Turner came up with the offensive rebound, he was never able to attempt a putback after being swarmed by defenders.
Penn State (6-2 overall) led by as many as 11 points in the second half before Hartford (3-4 overall) turned up the defensive intensity and crept its way back into the game. The Nittany Lions led 49-28 with 9:20 to go thanks to a 9-2 run and looked poised to put the game away. The Hawks, however, answered with a charge of their own.
Sophomore Jaret Von Rosenberg got things started with a three-pointer and, following a Bo Taylor basket, later came up with a steal and scored on a baseline drive. Penn State's Geary Claxton answered back with a bucket to make it 51-47, but Zimnickas scored on a jump hook in the lane to keep the Hawks close. Von Rosenberg then came up with another big steal and found Zeglinski on the wing for a three-pointer to pull Hartford to within one at 51-50 with 5:24 to go.
Hartford tied the game at 52-52 with 4:23 remaining on a Zeglinski drive and later took a 55-54 lead on a Von Rosenberg three-pointer with 2:48 to go. The Nittany Lions, however, broke Hartford's full-court press on the ensuing possession to take back the lead with an easy layup.
The Hawks had several chances in the final two minutes but couldn't cash in. Zimnickas missed on a move in the paint and Zeglinski missed a pair of free throws with 1:07 to play.
Hartford shot 39 percent for the game and held PSU to 37 percent shooting. The Nittany Lions dominated the glass by a 40-29 margin, getting 15 offensive rebounds that resulted in 13 second-chance points.
Taylor led four Hawks in double figures with 12 points. Turner notched his first career double-double with career highs of 11 points and 10 rebounds while Von Rosenberg also added 11 points and Zeglinski finished with 10 (all in the second half). Claxton led PSU with 16 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass.
Penn State used an 8-0 run midway through the first half to take a double-digit lead at 22-12. The Hawks never panicked and outscored the Nittany Lions 14-8 over the final 7:08 to cut the deficit to 30-26 at the break.
Hartford will play at Monmouth University on Saturday, December 9 at 7 p.m.
