Penn State falls to Oregon for 3rd loss in row

STATE COLLEGE — Jackson Shelstad scored 17 points, Keeshawn Barthelemy added 15, Jadrian Tracey had 13 and No. 15 Oregon held on to beat Penn State, 82-81, on Sunday.

Nate Bittle had 11 points, TJ Bamba and Kwame Evans Jr. added 10 apiece for the Ducks (15-2, 4-2 Big Ten), who trailed for most of the second half before regaining the lead in the final minute.

The score was tied 78-78 with just more than a minute to go before Shelstad hit a midrange jumper that put Oregon up two with 47 seconds left. Nick Kern tried a layup the other way, but the shot was off. Oregon gained possession, drew a foul and closed out the game with a pair of Tracey free throws.

Freddie Dilione V scored a career-high 21 points, Kern added 19 and Puff Johnson had 15 for the Nittany Lions (12-5, 2-4), who lost their third in a row.

The Ducks led 41-34 at halftime and had to overcome a sloppy early second half. They came up with shots when they needed them to win their third straight.

The Nittany Lions were without star point guard Ace Baldwin Jr., who suffered a back injury in the team’s 91-52 loss to No. 13 Illinois on Jan. 8. They’ll need to get their leading scorer and setup man back to try and snap out of a three-game losing skid that includes two losses to AP Top 25 teams.

The Ducks made 5 of 11 3-pointers in the first half but were just 3-for-11 shooting beyond the arc in the second.

The Nittany Lions visit No. 16 Michigan State on Wednesday.