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Hoops du jour

PSU men at Michigan

Tipoff: 8:30 p.m., Crisler Center

Records: Penn State (9-6, 1-1 Big Ten); Michigan (10-4, 0-1 Big Ten)

Coaches: Patrick Chambers is 81-96 in his sixth season at Penn State and 123-124 in eight seasons overall. John Beilein is 199-127 in his tenth season at Michigan and 492-302 in twenty seasons overall.

TV: BTN

Radio: ESPN 1430

Probable Starters: Penn State — G Shep Garner, 6-1 Jr. (14.1), G Tony Carr, 6-3 Fr. (11.8), F Josh Reaves, 6-4 So. (8.3), F Lamar Stevens, 6-7 Fr. (12.1), F Mike Watkins, 6-9 Fr. (10.4). Michigan — F Zak Irvin, 6-6 Sr. (13.9), G Derrick Walton Jr., 61 Sr. (12.4), F Moritz Wagner, 6-11 So. (11.6), G Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman, 6-4 Jr. (7.5), F D.J Wilson, 6-10 Jr. (9.9).

Notes: Penn State is looking to improve on it first Big Ten win of the season over Rutgers. … Freshman Tony Carr is continuing to demonstrate versatility, crashing the boards for offensive rebounds and leading the team in assists per game (3.9). However, it is the Lions’ defense that has determined the team’s success. When Penn State can limit their opponent to below 40-percent shooting, the Lions are 6-0 this season. … Michigan has proven to be a first-half team. The Wolverines were tied with No.4 UCLA at halftime but went on to lose, 102-84. They also led Virginia Tech at halftime before squandering a 15 point lead in a loss to the Hokies. … Despite their second-half shortcomings, the Wolverines veteran presence makes them a formidable opponent. The two-senior, two-junior lineup has given the Wolverines stable performances throughout the season. The Wolverines have limited the amount of turnovers per game (9.4) which has prevented questionable losses to less talented competition. … G Derrick Walton Jr. Is only four assists from being in Michigan’s top ten all-time for career assists.

Mirror prediction: Michigan 75, Penn State 67

Comment: Having a young team on the road for a second consecutive game against a veteran team makes a Lions victory unlikely. A big second half performance from Payton Banks and Shep Garner will give the Lions hope of a second Big Ten win, but a deliberate offensive attack by the Wolverines will bleed the clock and prevent an upset. The Wolverines are favored by 11.5 points.

Mirror prediction record: 12-3

— Paddy Cotter

Virginia at Pittsburgh men

Tipoff: 9 p.m., Petersen Events Center

Records: Virginia (11-2, 1-1 in ACC); Pittsburgh (11-3, 0-1 in ACC)

Coaches: Tony Bennett is 176-74 in his eighth season at Virginia and is 245-107 in his 11th year overall as a head coach. Kevin Stallings is 11-3 in his first season at Pittsburgh and is 466-286 in his 24th season overall.

TV: ROOT Sports

Probable starters: Virginia — G London Perrantes, 6-2 sr. (9.9), G Darius Thompson, 6-4 jr. (7.3), G Devon Hall, 6-5 jr. (6.5), F Isaiah Wilkins, 6-7 jr. (5.9), C Jack Salt, 6-11 so. (4.9). Pittsburgh — G Chris Jones 6-6 sr. (6.8), G Jamel Artis, 6-7 sr. (21.2), G Cameron Johnson, 6-8 so. (12.5), F Sheldon Jeter, 6-8 sr. (7.1), F Michael Young, 6-9 sr. (22.9).

Notes: Virginia leads the all-time series 11-3 and is 4-0 against the Panthers since they joined the ACC. … In fact, Virginia has won seven in a row against Pitt and is 2-0 all-time at the Petersen Events Center. … The Cavaliers are ranked No. 11 in the AP Poll and No. 12 in the USA Today Coaches Poll. … Virginia and Pitt are both coming off of heartbreaking losses in the final seconds. Florida State and Notre Dame each made 3-pointers with less than five seconds left to win their respective games.

Mirror prediction: Virginia 71, Pittsburgh 65

Comment: Tough stretch for Panthers continues with trips to Syracuse and Louisville looming next.

Mirror prediction record: 11-3

— Michael Boytim

Juniata men roll over Lancaster Baptist

HUNTINGDON — An uneven first half effort gave way to a strong performance in the second as the Juniata men’s basketball team took down Lancaster Bible 77-55 on Tuesday night at Memorial Gymnasium. The victory improved the Eagles’ record to 8-4.

The Eagle offense came to life in the second half as a 16-5 burst gave Juniata a 44-31 lead at 15:39. A 12-0 run expanded that advantage to 58-35 and JC never looked back as cruised it to the win.

It was a tale of two halves for the Eagles. After shooting 40.7 percent from the floor in the first half, Juniata went on to shoot 66.7 percent  in the second. JC’s 3-point percentage was at 55.6 percent after only making 22.2 percent of its attempts in the first half.

Four of five Eagle starters reached double-digits in points. Collectively, JC starters were 25-of-39 from the floor for 60 points. Leading the way was Marcus Lee’s 18 points. He also dished out five assists. Seth Brewer added 16 points and three assists. Brandon Martinazzi chipped in 12 points. Trevor Clune contributed 14 points.

Juniata had a strong presence in the paint with a 42-18 advantage. The team also outscored the Chargers 28-15 off of turnovers.

Landmark Conference play resumes this Saturday as Catholic comes to Memorial Gymnasium. Game time between the Cardinals and Eagles will be at 4 p.m.

Juniata women beat Swarthmore

GETTYSBURG — Juniata outpointed Swarthmore 21-5 in the second quarter and went on to a 68-48 victory in the finals of the Gettysburg Holiday Tournament on Tuesday.

All-tournament selection Dani Atkinson matched the 12 points she had in the Eagles’ opening game. Kaitlyn Young tallied 10 points off the bench.

Twelve Juniata players scored. Kelly Leamer pulled down eight rebounds, while Veronica Cosmpolis handed out five assists.

Juniata held Swarthmore to just 16-of-68 shooting from the field.

Boston’s Thomas remains hot

BOSTON — Isaiah Thomas had 29 points and a career-high 15 assists, and the Boston Celtics made 17 3-pointers for the second straight game in beating the Utah Jazz 115-104 on Tuesday night.

Al Horford and Jae Crowder added 21 points apiece and Avery Bradley scored 14 for the Celtics, who have won four of five and eight of 10.

Gordon Hayward led Utah with 23 points. Rudy Gobert pulled down 13 rebounds, extending his streak of 10 or more to 21 consecutive games.

Thomas, coming off his career-high 52 points Friday against the Heat, has scored at least 20 in 19 straight games.

Elsewhere:

PACERS 121, PISTONS 116: Paul George had 32 points and Indiana beat Detroit.

76ERS 93, TIMBERWOLVES 91: Robert Covington made a fall-away shot off an inbounds pass with 0.2 seconds left to give Philadelphia a victory over Minnesota.

Jayhawks edge K-State

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Svi Mykhailiuk went the length of the court and threw in a finger-tip layup as the buzzer sounded to give No. 3 Kansas a 90-88 victory over Kansas State on Tuesday night.

Josh Jackson matched a career high with 22 points to go with nine rebounds and six assists, and Landen Lucas added 18 points and 12 rebounds, as the Jayhawks (13-1, 2-0 Big 12) pushed their home winning streak to 50 in one of the closest games during that incredible streak.

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