GAME NOTES: The fourth-seeded Purdue Boilermakers embark on their postseason journey when they play their first game in the 2015 Big Ten Conference Tournament by taking on the 13th-seeded Penn State Nittany Lions in quarterfinal-round action on Friday afternoon.

The winner moves on to Saturday's semifinals to battle either Michigan or top- seeded Wisconsin.

Penn State has already won a pair of games in the event, taking out No. 12 seed Nebraska in the first round on Wednesday, 68-65, and No. 5 seed Iowa in Thursday's second round, 67-58. As a result, the Lions have won three straight games and improved to 18-15 on the season and 11-17 in the Big Ten Tournament. They are seeking a return to the championship game for the first since making their only appearance in 2011 -- a 71-60 loss to Ohio State.

Purdue has won 20 games this season, but has lost two of its last three coming into this event. The Boilermakers, who boast having the league's Defensive Player of the Year in Rapheal Davis (11.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.7 apg), claimed their only Big Ten Tournament championship in 2009 by knocking off Ohio State, 65-61, and that was the team's only other appearance in the title tilt since losing to Michigan in the inaugural event back in 1998.

Purdue owns a 31-12 advantage in the all-time series with Penn State, and a 1-0 edge in Big Ten Tournament play. The Boilermakers defeated the Nittany Lions in overtime on the road on Jan. 17, 84-77, in the only meeting between the two during the regular season.

Big Ten scoring champ D.J. Newbill tallied 18 points, and Ross Travis scored a season-high 17 to help lead Penn State to its upset of Iowa on Thursday. Geno Thorpe scored seven of his 11 points in the second half for PSU, which held the Hawkeyes to just 22 percent field goal efficiency over the final 20 minutes. The Lions trailed by eight at the break, scoring a mere 19 points in the opening half, but they exploded for 48 points in the second, more than doubling their shooting percentage in the process (.250 to .536). Iowa easily won the rebounding battle (49-34), and outscored PSU at the foul line (25-17), but the Hawkeyes shot just 26.3 percent from the field for the game, and missed 12 of their 15 3-point tries. Newbill had 26 points in Penn State's first-round win over Nebraska.

In addition to Davis, Purdue also has a standout performer in A.J. Hammons (11.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg), and solid contributors in Job Octeus (9.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and Kendall Stephens (9.0 ppg), each of whom helps the team produce 70.7 ppg while giving up 64.5 ppg. The Boilermakers are one of the better rebounding clubs in the Big Ten, logging a +4.8 differential on the glass, but they are in the red with regard to turnover margin (-1.1). Hammons is far and away the best shot blocker in the conference, his 88 swats being 29 more than his closest competitor, and he ranks 14th in the country with 2.84 bpg. As a team, Purdue averages 5.4 bpg to rank first in the conference and tie for 15th nationally.

Penn State's run could certainly continue as Purdue, while solid in its own right, isn't unbeatable. Expect a tough game between two teams unwilling to yield to the other, but for the Lions to win one more time.