NCAA Basketball: 68 defining moments of the 2019-20 season

23. Penn State proves itself at The Palestra. (Jan. 4th)

This was a really fun game to watch. Iowa and Penn State both quickly emerged two of the better teams in the Big Ten this season and facing off against each other in The Palestra was a blast. The historic venue certainly added a bonus to this moment but the entire game was a high-scoring back-and-forth affair.

These two teams were both ranked at the time of the matchup and it was Penn State’s reserves that were truly the difference. Izaiah Brockington and Curtis Jones combined for 39 points off the bench to help the Nittany Lions prove themselves. The team showed that it had more than just its key seniors in Watkins and Stevens in this one. On the other side, Joe Wieskamp, Joe Toussaint, and Luka Garza combined for 75 of Iowa’s 86 points.

Both squads fought hard in one of the most entertaining matchups of the season in a historic venue.

24. Baylor notches a win at The Phog. (Jan. 11th)

Baylor and Kansas were two of the best teams all season long so it would be a mistake to not include at least one of their matchups in this listing of some of the top moments. On Jan. 11th, Baylor was sitting at 12-1 with a plethora of top-tier wins including those of Arizona, Butler, Villanova, and Texas Tech.

Kansas didn’t boast the same quality of resume but was still 12-2 and ranked as one of the most efficient teams in the country. This battle at The Phog was expectedly highly-anticipated.

This was a hard-fought battle and it was Baylor’s backcourt that pushed the team to success. MaCio Teague and Jared Butler combined for 38 points on the night on 6-for-12 from beyond the arc. This victory for the Bears asserted them as arguably the best team in the entire country thanks to its shotmaking at the guard spots and elite interior defense.

It is important to mention that Kansas was able to get its revenge in Waco a month and a half later.