Saturday night's game against Ohio State at the Bryce Jordan Center was a perfect opportunity for redemption.

Redemption for the Penn State men's basketball team after a dramatic six-point loss to the Buckeyes (17-8, 6-5 Big Ten) in Columbus more than three weeks ago.

Redemption for the waxing by Wisconsin at home, for the recent spanking by Purdue last Wednesday.

Instead, it was another Penn State loss and another disappointment in the Nittany Lions' somber season. The Lions (7-16, 1-9 Big Ten) dropped their sixth-straight contest with a 66-56 loss to the Buckeyes.

In the opening five minutes, guard Ben Luber and forward Aaron Johnson played like the veterans they are and like they had the ability to pick this Penn State team back up. Johnson made a long jumper and converted a 3-point play. Luber converted a 3-point play after being fouled while shooting a lay-up. He then drew an offensive foul and scored off of a steal to tie the game at 10.

"I really wanted to win this game, that's all" Luber said. "I want to win every game, but I just came out with a lot more intensity [Saturday]."

Johnson and Luber played a solid five-minute spurt, the key word being "spurt." Penn State had a few of them -- just not at the pertinent times.

"Defensive breakdowns occurred at crucial times," Penn State coach Ed DeChellis said. "We've been working on being aggressive defensively and putting pressure on the ball. We need to be more aggressive."

After trailing 27-22 at the half, Penn State showcased a promising defensive stint. Johnson and guard Mike Walker doubled for a steal, Luber tabbed two steals and Parker followed with another, giving Penn State its best turnover-to-steal ratio of the season (7-7).

But consecutive 3-pointers by Ohio State guard J.J. Sullinger and Matt Sylvester, who scored 15 points off the bench, squashed the momentum. Penn State got going when forward Geary Claxton and guard Danny Morrissey scored, bringing the Lions within two at 42-40. Buckeyes guards Je'Kel Foster and Tony Stockman answered with consecutive treys -- again.

"They hit a lot of big shots in transition," DeChellis said. "Their baseline play hurt us and they had a lot of open shots. They made every big shot they needed to make."

Penn State had one last chance when Claxton was fouled with 4:01 remaining in the game. He missed the free throw and Sylvester knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Buckeyes their largest lead of the game, a 58-47 advantage.

Penn State posted some of its most impressive numbers of the season, such as 70 shots. Making just 21 of them, however, isn't so flattering.

The Lions scored 30 points in the paint to just 16 for Ohio State. They had the edge in the points-off-turnover department, second-chance points, turnovers and steals. But none of that mattered when the final horn sounded.

"We just couldn't make a basket," DeChellis said. "We had some in the first half rattle out. It's tough to pull points out."

And that redemption had to wait.