Ohio State 75, Penn State 55

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Sam Thompson scored 22 points and D’Angelo Russell had 17 as No. 23 Ohio State defeated Penn State 75-55 on Wednesday night.

Thompson, a senior guard, was 6 of 11 from the floor and made 3 of 5 3-pointers. Russell, a freshman, had seven assists and six rebounds.

The Buckeyes (19-6, 7-4 Big Ten) have won five of six to maintain second place in the conference.

Senior guard D.J. Newbill had 16 points for the Nittany Lions (15-10, 3-9) and junior forward Brandon Taylor finished with 11 points after failing to score in the first half.

Penn State trailed by as many as 17 points in the first half and were down 14 at the half but got to within 11 at 47-36 on the third 3-pointer of the second half by Taylor with 15 minutes to play.

Thompson had two three-point plays and freshman reserve forward Keita Bates-Diop added a basket and free throw to take the advantage to 56-38.

Ohio State boosted the lead to 22 at 71-49 with four minutes left on a 3-pointer by freshman forward Jae’Sean Tate, who finished with nine points. Senior guard Shannon Scott set a career high with 10 rebounds.

Russell and Thompson combined to outscore Penn State by one point when the Buckeyes took a 37-23 halftime lead against the cold-shooting Nittany Lions.

Thompson had 13 points, which included 2 of 3 from 3-point range, and Russell added 11 points and two assists in the opening half.

The Buckeyes scored the first 12 points as the Nittany Lions missed their first 11 shots from the field, including five beyond the arc, and also committed a shot-clock violation.

Penn State got on the board on a half-hook by forward Julian Moore with 13:04 to go, but the Buckeyes were able to increase the lead to 24-8 five minutes later.

The Nittany Lions sliced the deficit in half to 24-16 on a basket by forward Travis Ross only to see the Buckeyes run off eight straight to go up by 16 again with four minutes left.

NOTES: The game was the first of three straight for Penn State vs. ranked opponents. The Nittany Lions host No. 19 Maryland on Saturday and No. 5 Wisconsin on Feb. 18. … Ohio State sophomore F Marc Loving missed his third straight game because of a school-imposed suspension. Coach Thad Matta said there is a possibility that Loving could return Saturday at Michigan State. … Ohio State starting C Anthony Lee did not play because of a groin injury. … Penn State ended an 18-game losing streak to the Buckeyes last season and swept the season series for the first time since 1998.