Apparently, this primate was pretty good at jumping and latching on.

The primate is the "road monkey" that jumped off former-Penn State men's basketball coach Jerry Dunn's back when he resigned, and attached itself to current men's basketball coach Ed DeChellis.

Twenty-two straight Big Ten road games have ended for Penn State with the same result -- a big fat "L" in the win-loss column. DeChellis is responsible for six of those losses, but can knock the monkey off his back tonight at 8 with a victory over an Ohio State team the Nittany Lions (9-16, 3-11 Big Ten) thoroughly dominated earlier this season.

That meeting came in the friendly and empty confines of the Bryce Jordan Center. It will be a different story at Value City Arena, where the attendance is about 15,000. The game will also help to determine the Lions' seeding in the Big Ten tournament. They need to win one of their remaining two games to avoid being the No. 11 seed in the tournament.

"I haven't really thought about [seeding]," DeChellis said. "We are going to be one of those teams in the bottom four. I would just like to win a game going into the tournament and give us some confidence and some energy."

In the 64-47 victory by the Lions in January, Marlon Smith had a career-high 23 points as the Buckeyes' guards were unable to contain him. His quickness and ball-handling ability allowed him to get to the free throw line 16 times. Smith has been the lone player for the Lions who has played well on the road, scoring 15 or more points in his last four road efforts.

After the Lions' loss to Michigan State on Saturday, Smith discussed the frustration coming from the Lions' offensive woes.

"There are things we can do to make ourselves better," Smith said. "I don't think it starts with offense at all. It starts with the defensive part because, no matter what, you can always get shots off and score."

Smith and backcourt-mate Ben Luber should welcome Buckeyes guards Tony Stockman and Brandon Fuss-Cheatham, as they are far smaller and less active on both ends than the other Big Ten guards: Michigan State's Kelvin Torbert, Wisconsin's Devin Harris and Illinois' Dee Brown.

"Everybody doesn't shoot the ball for both teams like a Michigan State or an Illinois does," DeChellis said.

Although Ohio State may not have the players an Illinois or Michigan State does, it is still playing for its postseason life. The Buckeyes need to beat the Lions to keep hope alive for the NIT, while the Lions just need to find a reason to keep hope alive.