INDIANAPOLIS -- A win Friday against No. 3 seed Purdue and Penn State is likely off the bubble and into the field of 65.
So why does its star point guard want no part in any in-or-out discussion?
Soaking both feet in a bucket of ice water after Thursday night's 66-51 win, Talor Battle had a calming voice about the impact Friday's game had on his squad's tournament hopes.
One could almost detect a hint of certainty from Battle that Friday night's 9 p.m. tip against the Boilermakers isn't a must-win.
Battle won't fret over the final result as long as the Nittany Lions repeat Thursday night's performance by playing relaxed, energetic and strong defense.
"If that's not good enough for the NCAA tournament, I'm sure not a lot of guys will hang their head in the locker room," Battle said.
The Lions' win was the third for Big Ten bubble teams Thursday, prompting Hoosier coach Tom Crean to share his thoughts toward the conference's tournament bids.
"I don't even know why it would be close," Crean said.
"I spent three years in the Big East. It's a tremendous league, but this league doesn't take a back seat to anybody's league ... and there's no question that nobody should be shocked if it's nine. OK. Maybe we get happy with eight, but there ought to be a major revolt if it's seven because it wouldn't make any sense."
Penn State is one of the biggest question marks left in Indianapolis for tournament-destined teams.
Minnesota figures to have a handle on an at-large bid despite falling to top-seed Michigan State 64-56 Friday afternoon.
Not that Battle believes that outcome or any other alleviates pressure to build the Lions' resume.
"We're solely focused on Penn State basketball," Battle said.
Lions' coach Ed DeChellis has not detached his coaching this March from the season-long objective to become a better basketball team by the day.
"The wins and losses will take care of themselves," DeChellis said. "And obviously the other thing will take care of itself."
That other thing -- the NCAA tournament bid -- that means so much to Cornley and the 13 other members of the men's basketball team is still the ultimate objective of the weekend.
Senior guard Stanley Pringle doesn't care to think what impact Friday night's game might have. Keep winning, and the debate on whether the Lions are in or out is moot.
"I don't even care," Pringle said. "I'm just gonna try to win every game we play. If we're in, we're in."
