Will Penn State Basketball be the First Team Out of the NCAA Tournament?

Penn State is 2-2 in Big Ten play and recently lost to Indiana at the historic Palestra on Sunday. PSU is 1-1 in Quad 1 games and 1-2 in Quad 2 games, with its most notable win coming against then No. 8 Purdue.

On Wednesday, Mike Rhoades and Co. will have a chance to bounce back and possibly regain a foothold in the postseason at No. 13 Illinois. Wednesday’s matchup in Champaign, Illinois is the beginning of a three-game stretch for the Nittany Lions that features all AP-ranked opponents.

Heading into the game against the Fighting Illini, Penn State has won all four of the last meetings but has a 9-16 record when visiting the State Farm Center. In PSU’s last win against Illinois, Nick Kern Jr. had a team-high 22 points, 18 of which came in the second half.

Since last season, the Nittany Lions have won three straight games against AP top-15 opponents, but Wednesday’s game will be the first during this streak to not take place at the Bryce Jordan Center.

The Big Ten trails the SEC for the most tournament bids, 13-10, in Lunardi’s midweek conference breakdowns. Big Ten teams in action on Wednesday are:

• No. 13 Illinois vs. Penn State
• Indiana vs. USC

Lunardi will have a full update to his bracket on Friday on espn.com.