Twenty-six times they marched to the foul line, more than they had all year in conference play. It was almost an unintended challenge: We put you there, now make them.

And the Penn State men's basketball players did, 20 times, with the same poise that allowed their team to win Saturday's game vs. Northwestern, 68-55, for its first winning regular season in five years, its lone senior and its postseason chances.

"We just didn't want to blow this opportunity, upset ourselves for all the hard work we put in over the summer, in the preseason," sophomore Geary Claxton said.

Claxton did his part, making 9-of-12 free throws and leading the Nittany Lions (14-12, 6-9 Big Ten) in scoring with 14 points. Senior forward Travis Parker also scored 14, but Penn State coach Ed DeChellis said each player contributed in a certain way.

"Our kids have really understood now about sharing the basketball," DeChellis said. "In the early part of the season, we were trying to put 10 pounds of potatoes in a five-pound sack. We were just jamming everything."

In making the extra pass and sharing the ball, the Lions made the most of their 39 shots (they average 56 per game). They made 20 of them, and attacked Northwestern's 1-3-1 zone with hard cuts to the basket in order to get fouls.

Parker said DeChellis told Penn State to penetrate and attack the zone because if you lay back, "you can't get much done."

That was the story for the Wildcats (13-13, 5-9), who passed the ball around and across the perimeter -- multiple times into the hands of a Penn State defender -- in an unproductive game of Hot Potato.

Meanwhile, junior Penn State guards Ben Luber and David Jackson handled the ball well against the zone, recording five assists each. They helped the Lions overcome a shaky start and go into halftime with a 35-25 lead.

"They pretty much got what they wanted on offense," Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said. "They were the aggressive team, they have some guys that like banging in there. A lot of my guys, they like open spaces -- the prairie guys."

Like the Wildcats' Evan Seacat, whose career-high 18 points all came from beyond the arc and all in the second half. His barrage helped Northwestern whittle a 13-point Lions lead at the beginning of the second half to six with 9:42 to play.

"I'm always concerned until the buzzer goes off," DeChellis said. "You're never too far ahead."

But the Lions answered quickly with a couple 3-point shots of Mike Walker, Blue Label. The sophomore guard hit his first with 8:21 left, and another 22 seconds later, to push the Penn State lead to 15, bring the crowd to its feet and cause Northwestern to call a timeout.

The Lions' largest lead of 19 came with 4:09 to go, icing the game and showing the level of Penn State's control. DeChellis prepared his team hard, getting on the squad after the Wildcats surprised Wisconsin last Thursday with a 62-51 upset win.

"Coach was just on us from that day," Parker said. "We was ready to practice, we was motivated."

Claxton said the Lions came into the game knowing what a win could do for their postseason chances. But he also said the team wanted to do something special for Parker, who was honored in his last regular season home game.

"It was in a way my day, but it was more of a team thing because we're going to the NIT probably now," Parker said. "That's great, I feel good about that."

With a sound victory, the team Penn State got a win for its senior and stands poised at the line for a potential postseason march.