City of Basketball Love

Marley Paul (@marleypaul22)

Penn State put together another solid outing on Saturday for its third consecutive victory with 81-70 win over Eastern Michigan in the Bryce Jordan Center. The game started a slate of four games in seven days for the Nittany Lions as the end of the non-conference schedule approaches. 

At first...
It was a great start for the Nittany Lions with Josh Reaves nailing his first 3-point basket of the season, a promising sign for the freshman who has been working hard this. Shep Garner added another 3-pointer and the Lions jumped out to quick 6-2 lead. 

The strong start wouldn't last long, as the Lions fell behind by four with a long scoring drought over the first half that lasted until midway through the half.

Turning point...
The last seven minutes of the first half were strong as the Lions were able to put together some baskets and get some stops on the other end. A 14-1 run put Penn State ahead 28-19 with 4 minutes left in the half. 

Penn State followed that with a 13-2 run over the first seven minutes of the second half to stretch the lead to 52-31. 

Shining star...
A bounce-back performance by forward Brandon Taylor, and arguably the best of his four-year career. After being held to two points last game at Boston College, he was the inside-out mismatch coach Chambers envisioned.

Taylor started off with a slow start, going 2 for 7, but picked it up, finishing with 27 points and 12 rebounds, both career highs, and added three assists. 

Noteworthy Number...
The Lions finished with 49 rebounds, and held the Eagles to 31, and six offensively. Penn State came into the contest with a minus-.3 rebounding margin, averaging just 35.3. 

Behind Taylor's career night, Julian Moore added eight boards, while Garner added six from the point guard spot. 

Up next...
Penn State (5-2) at George Washington (7-1) Dec. 8, 7 p.m.