Most Penn State fans remember seeing their squad defeat Texas A&M before falling to Texas during March Madness in 2023. A good chunk of them probably also watched the Crispin brothers lead the team to the 2001 Sweet 16 after wins over Providence and North Carolina.
But if any current Nittany Lion enthusiasts want to reminisce about a deep NCAA Tournament run, they’ll have to turn the clock way back and scroll through seven decades to the tune of March 1954 — the program’s lone run to the Final Four.
And barring a miracle, this is the only option. It would be stunning to see Penn State in the Final Four any time in the near future. Frankly, the only podium finish that seems likely for the team this upcoming year is being one of the best Big Ten teams to miss the conference tournament.
With that said, let’s go back to the early Cold War era to relive the five games in the Nittany Lions’ Final Four trip, which allowed the team to finish with an 18-6 record and No. 9 in the AP Poll.
First Round: Penn State 62, Toledo 50 (March 9, 1954)
Some foul trouble plagued the Nittany Lions early on, helping Toledo carry a 30-27 lead into the locker room at the half. Furthermore, Toledo forward Phil Martin led the way for the Rockets to take a six-point advantage midway through the third quarter, 40-34. Martin wound up finishing the contest with 23 points.
But then, the tides turned as the Nittany Lions eventually tied the score and gained a 48-46 lead in the fourth quarter. It was all Penn State from there on out with Jesse Arnelle, Ron Weidenhammer and Jim Brewer reaching double figures to power an offensive explosion to secure the victory.
Sweet 16: Penn State 78, No. 14 LSU 70 (March 12, 1954)
The Nittany Lions found themselves in a similar deficit as their first round, falling behind by 10 points to LSU in the second quarter. All-American Bob Pettit Jr. finished with 34 points for the Tigers, which largely caused the early deficit for the blue and white.
Penn State fought back to claim a 34-32 advantage at the half and another offensive downpour was in the cards for the team. Arnelle tallied 24 points and 14 rebounds while the Nittany Lions as a whole drained 29 field goals and 20 foul shots on top of a 44-point second half to advance to the regional finals.
Photo courtesy of Penn State Athletics
Elite 8: Penn State 71, No. 6 Notre Dame 63 (March 13, 1954)
To say it was a back-and-forth beginning in this Elite 8 matchup would be an understatement. Penn State and Notre Dame exchanged the lead 11 times in the first half. The last exchange happened when Arnelle knocked down a pair of free throws to take a 28-27 advantage, and the Nittany Lions stayed in front for the rest of the way.
While Penn State always remained in the lead, the third quarter was tightly contested. However, the Nittany Lions exploded in the fourth quarter with 26 points to close out the win. Arnelle scored a team-high 22 points while John Sherry, Jim Blocker and Ed Haag finished in double figures as well.
Final Four: No. 2 La Salle 69, Penn State 54 (March 19, 1954)
In what might just be the biggest game in program history to this day, Penn State saved a poor shooting performance for the worst time. The team shot 25.3% on 72 attempts from the field, allowing La Salle, the eventual national champions, to take the win by a large margin.
Arnelle had another quality game with 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting, but none of his teammates provided enough help to keep up with the Explorers. It truly was a missed opportunity for the Nittany Lions, as La Salle only had an average 44.0% shooting while also missing 11 free throws.
Third-place game: Penn State 70, No. 11 USC 61 (March 20, 1954)
Unlike most games during this run, Penn State came out hot against USC, earning a 44-26 advantage at the half. Arnelle, who dropped 25 points on the Trojans, lifted his squad to that lead with his strong hook shot.
The Nittany Lions remained in front by a wide margin for much of the second half, but USC trimmed the difference down to 66-60 late in the fourth quarter. Weidenhammer and Blocker both had key baskets with less than a minute to play to put the game away and earn Penn State a third-place finish.
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