So, you’re looking for the score. It’s a Sunday in mid-January, which usually means the football pads are packed away and the focus has shifted toward the hardwood and the wrestling mats. If you're frantically checking your phone to see what’s the score of the Penn State game right now, you’ve likely got a few different teams in mind.
Penn State sports move fast this time of year. Today, January 18, 2026, the spotlight is split between a gritty basketball road trip to Maryland and a historic wrestling streak being tested in Evanston.
Men’s Basketball: Nittany Lions at Maryland
The big ticket today is the men's basketball squad taking on the Maryland Terrapins at the XFINITY Center. This is a classic Big Ten clash. Tips went off at 12:00 PM EST, and honestly, it’s been a tough afternoon for the blue and white.
The live score currently has Maryland leading Penn State 90–68.
It’s been one of those games where the shots just aren't falling. Maryland’s defense at home is always a nightmare, and they’ve been able to turn Penn State’s turnovers into easy transition buckets. If you’re a Lions fan, it’s a bit of a "look away" game right now, but that’s the reality of life in the Big Ten. One night you’re up, the next you’re fighting for air in College Park.
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The Dynasty Continues: Wrestling at Northwestern
If you want some good news, you have to look at the wrestling mat. Following a massive 32–3 dismantling of No. 4 Iowa on Friday night, Cael Sanderson’s crew is at it again.
They are currently at Northwestern for a 3:00 PM ET start.
The Nittany Lions are chasing their 80th consecutive dual win. Think about that. 80. It’s basically unheard of in modern sports. After Josh Barr’s pin on Friday and Rocco Welsh’s gutsy tiebreaker win over Angelo Ferrari, this team looks unstoppable. We’re waiting on the final match results from Evanston, but most experts expect another lopsided score in favor of Penn State.
Looking Back: What Happened to Football?
A lot of people are still searching for the football score, maybe out of habit or maybe because they missed the bowl season. Penn State wrapped up their 2025 campaign on a high note.
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They played Clemson in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl on December 27.
- Final Score: Penn State 22, Clemson 10.
- Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY.
- Record: They finished the season 7–6.
It was a weird season. They started hot, ranked as high as No. 2 in the country, but then hit a brutal five-game losing streak in the middle of the Big Ten schedule. Losses to Oregon, UCLA, and Ohio State hurt. But honestly, winning that bowl game against a program like Clemson gave the fans something to feel good about heading into the off-season.
Lady Lions and Other Scores
Don't forget the women’s hoops. The Lady Lions are also in action today at Rec Hall.
- Opponent: Rutgers Scarlet Knights.
- Time: 1:00 PM ET.
- Status: This is a tight one. Early reports from the second quarter had Rutgers leading 35–33.
It’s a "someone has to win" kind of game, as both teams have been struggling in conference play. Rutgers is sitting at 0–6 in the Big Ten, while Penn State is 0–7. One of these streaks is ending today.
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Why These Scores Matter for the Season
Tracking what’s the score of the Penn State games across different sports gives you a pretty good vibe of where the athletic department is. The wrestling team is clearly the gold standard, currently ranked No. 1 and looking like they’ll cruise to another national title.
Basketball is a different story. It’s a rebuilding phase. Seeing scores like 90–68 against Maryland shows there’s still a massive gap between the middle of the pack and the top tier of the Big Ten.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you want to keep up with the scores without refreshing Google every five seconds, here’s what you should actually do:
- Check the B1G+ Stream: For wrestling and women's basketball, most of these mid-season games are on the Big Ten’s streaming service rather than national TV.
- Listen to Jeff Byers: If you can’t watch the wrestling match, Jeff Byers on the Penn State Sports Network is the best way to "see" the match through your ears.
- Watch the Standings: For basketball, pay attention to the "points off turnovers" stat. In the Purdue game on January 10 (which PSU lost 93–85), and again today, that’s been the deciding factor.
Penn State sports are a roller coaster. You get the pure dominance of the wrestling team mixed with the heart-attack-inducing inconsistency of the basketball and football teams. But hey, that’s why we watch.
Check back for the final totals once the Northwestern wrestling dual wraps up later this afternoon.
To stay updated on the final wrestling results from Evanston, monitor the official Big Ten wrestling scoreboards or the Penn State Athletics social media feeds for the confirmed 80th-straight victory announcement. For the basketball team, the next chance to bounce back will be their upcoming home game, where they’ll look to fix the defensive lapses seen in today’s score against Maryland.