Both Penn State and Iowa were in a must-win situation last night.

A loss by either squad could have eliminated it from a possible NCAA tournament bid. After a 78-73 win on the road, the Nittany Lions men's basketball team is the one in the better position this week.

"Both teams had to have this game," Penn State coach Jerry Dunn told the Penn State Sports Network. "And our guys came out tonight with that attitude."

The game was close from the beginning, with neither team pulling away by more than eight points. The first half saw a back-and-forth battle, ending in a 31-31 tie.

The second half was a little more eventful, as each team had some runs. The Hawkeyes (18-10, 7-8 Big Ten) had their largest spurt with about 14 minutes on the clock and the score tied at 41. Iowa senior star Dean Oliver hit his first field goal of the night, sparking a 10-2 run.

Down 55-47, the Lions (17-9, 7-8 Big Ten) mounted a comeback of their own with nearly 9:00 remaining. It piled on 16 unanswered points and was capped off by Penn State senior Titus Ivory, who hit a three-pointer from several feet beyond the arc and the shot clock running out. The shot made it 63-55 with about 4:00 remaining.

The Hawkeyes did their best to make it interesting. Iowa freshman Brody Boyd hit two of his four three-pointers to make the score 65-61. The Lions were able to hold them off for a short time, but the Hawkeyes kept on fighting back.

With some late baskets, Iowa put itself in a position to tie the game. Boyd, who scored 19 points in the game, was fouled on a three-point attempt at the 3.8-second mark and down 74-71,but missed two of three.

Before the ensuing inbound pass, the Hawkeyes tried to foul Penn State freshman Jamaal Tate away from the ball, placing him at the line and giving Iowa one last chance to tie the game. But an intentional foul was called, Tate hit both free throws and Lions senior Joe Crispin hit a meaningless layup as time expired to close the deal.

Iowa junior Reggie Evans had a double-double with 13 points and 16 boards. Oliver finished with 15 points.

Penn State got a pleasant surprise with 19 points and 12 rebounds from its bench, a performance Dunn labeled as "outstanding." Tate led the reserves with a career-high 10 points and 4 rebounds.

"Sometimes you don't know what to expect from freshman at this time of year," Dunn said. "But Jamal is playing with a lot of confidence right now."

The bench's play was critical because Ivory struggled for the second straight contest, scoring 9 points before fouling out late in the game. Crispin recorded 15, 11 of which came in the second half, and senior Gyasi Cline-Heard scored 20.

"This is a big win for us," Tate said. "This just brings us one step closer to making the NCAA tournament."