Hoops du Jour
Men: Penn State at Iowa
Tipoff: 9 p.m., Carver Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, Iowa
Records: Penn State (13-6, 3-5 league); Iowa (12-7, 3-5 league)
TV: Fox Sports 1
Radio: Penn State Sports Network
Satellite: Sirius 381 & 397
Notable: Iowa is coming off a loss at home to Minnesota, while Penn State is coming off a win at home over Rutgers. … The Hawkeyes are 10-2 at home this year, and for the season, averaging 88.4 points per-game, good enough for first in scoring in the Big Ten. However, in their last two games, they have scored 70 (UCLA) and 67 (Minnesota). Overall, the Hawkeyes have lost three in a row coming into tonight’s game. … Their top threat is Owen Freeman, who averages 16.7 points-per game, 6.4 rebounds per-game and 2.1 blocks per-game. … They have won four straight at home vs. Penn State. … Penn State still has four players scoring in double figures, led by point guard Ace Baldwin Jr. at 14.7 ppg. … Iowa is 34-21 lifetime against the Nittany Lions.
Mirror prediction: Iowa 85, Penn State 84
Mirror prediction record: 15-4
— Scott Franco
Men: LIU at Saint Francis
Tipoff: 7 p.m., DeGol Arena, Loretto
Records: LIU (10-11, 6-0 Northeast) at Saint Francis University (7-13, 2-4 Northeast)
TV: NEC Front Row (Pat Farabaugh, pxp; Bernie Jubeck, color)
Notable: SFU junior forward Valentino Pinedo is coming off his first career NEC double-double, scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in the Flash’s loss to Wagner on Monday. … Bobby Rosenberger III needs eight points to 500 career points. Rosenberger would become the first player since Myles Thompson to reach the mark in his first two seasons. … LIU comes into the contest 6-0 in NEC play after defeating Mercyhurst 72-63 on Monday. According to NEC Senior Associate Commissioner Ron Ratner, the Sharks are the 13th team in the NEC to start at least 6-0 in league play. Four of the previous teams lost their seventh games, including the 1990-91 Saint Francis team that would go on to win its only NEC title. The Red Flash lost on the road at Robert Morris 89-87 on Jan. 19, 1991, in the seventh game. The Colonials (1982-83), FDU (1996-97) and Bryant (2012-13) are the other three teams to start 6-0 before falling in game seven.
Mirror prediction: LIU 68, Saint Francis 63
Mirror prediction record: 16-4
— Dan Isenberg
Comeback falls short for SFU
BROOKLYN, NY — Coming off three-straight wins at home, the Saint Francis women’s basketball team could not sustain the momentum on the road, falling 63-56 at Long Island University in Northeast Conference action on Thursday.
Ineivi Plata placed the Red Flash (6-14, NEC 4-3) with a career-high 14 points. The freshman registered six rebounds, three assists, and a steal. Teammate Natalie Johnson added 13 points off the bench.
Down 41-24 at halftime, Saint Francis cut the lead to seven points four times in the fourth quarter on Harris Robinson’s triple with 4:18 left, before Johnson had a pair of baskets at 2:28 and with 57 seconds left, and Marina Artero scored in the lane with 21 seconds left but could get no closer.
Saint Francis cut into that lead in the third witih a 15-5 run at one point, and trailed 53-39 going into the final frame.
The Lady Sharks (5-15, NEC 2-5) got 18 pints from Sirviva Legions to go with 15 from Janessa Williams and 12 points from Brianna Mead.
SFU is back at it on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Wagner.
SAINT FRANCIS (56): Plata 5-6 1-1 14, Boyd 3-6 1-2 7, Artero 3-4 0-0 6, Gibson 0-0 1-2 1, Shelton 0-6 0-0 0, Johnson 5-12 1-2 13, Lavy 2-8 0-0 6, Campbell 1-4 2-2 4, Robinson 1-1 0-0 3, Eke 0-2 2-2 2, Bell 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 20-50 8-11 56.
LONG ISLAND (63): Legions 6-19 6-8 18, Williams 3-8 7-8 15, Mead 4-10 2-2 12, Vazquez 3-5 0-0 7, Denes 0-1 0-0 0, Glenn 2-3 0-0 6, Sherrill 2-2 1-2 5, Varga 0-0 0-0 0, Mukura 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 20-48 16-20 63.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Saint Francis 14 10 15 17 — 56
Long Island 21 20 12 10 — 63
3-point goals–SFU 8-22 (Plata 3-4, Boyd 0-1, Shelton 0-3, Johnson 2-5, Lavy 2-8, Robinson 1-1); LIU–7-18 9Legions 0-2, Williams 2-5, Mead 2-6, Vazquez 1-1, Denes 0-1, Glenn 2-3). Rebounds–SFU 31 (Artero 7); LIU 29 (Williams 9). Assists — SFU 15 (Plata 3); LIU 8 (Mead 4). Technical fouls–SFU 1 (Team). Attendance–188.
Records: SFU (6-14, NEC 4-3); LIU (5-15, NEC 2-5)
James extending his All-Star records
The NBA revealed the starters — some of them, anyway — for the revamped All-Star Game on Thursday night, and there wasn’t much in the way of surprises. James is now officially an All-Star for the 21st year.
The other starters:
n New York’s Jalen Brunson and Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell as the Eastern Conference guards.
n Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Boston’s Jayson Tatum and New York’s Karl-Anthony Towns as the East frontcourt players.
n Golden State’s Stephen Curry and NBA leading scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as Western Conference guards.
n Phoenix’s Kevin Durant and Denver’s Nikola Jokic as the West frontcourt players alongside James.
The starters were picked through a system of weighted balloting: 50% was fan voting, 25% was a media panel and 25% was voting by current players.
There are 14 more All-Stars yet to be announced, and they’ll be chosen in a vote of the league’s head coaches. That list will be revealed on Jan. 30, and the All-Star Game happens on Feb. 16.
Among the candidates for reserve spots: San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama, the Lakers’ Anthony Davis, reigning All-Star Game MVP Damian Lillard of Milwaukee, Miami’s Tyler Herro, Atlanta’s Trae Young and Charlotte’s LaMelo Ball.
There will be at least 15 different players who “start” at the All-Star Game this season. It’s the first year of a new All-Star format, with three games. The 24 All-Stars will be drafted into three teams of eight players apiece by TNT personalities and former NBA greats Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.
Those three teams will be entered into a four-team tournament, with the remaining squad made up of NBA rookies and second-year players from the Rising Stars event on All-Star Friday. There are two semifinal games, with the winners meeting in a championship game. The games should go quickly; the first team to reach 40 points wins.
From Mirror, wire reports