City of Basketball Love

Michael Bullock (@thebullp_n)
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STATE COLLEGE — With the freshmen trio of Lamar Stevens, Tony Carr and Mike Watkins leading the way, Penn State evened its early-season mark with an 82-74 win over Duquesne. Stevens, Carr and Watkins shared 59 points before it was over.

Here’s a quick report with stats, notes and more from Bryce Jordan Center:

At First…
Penn State twice led by five points in the opening half, but couldn’t pull away from the visiting Dukes. A lack of second-chance opportunities was one nagging issue for the Nittany Lions, although a late flurry led to Stevens’ conventional three-point play and a 29-24 advantage. Patrick Chambers’ Lions led 33-29 at the break thanks to a Terrence Samuel finish at the tin following a Shep Garner kickout.

Turning Point…
Tied at 56-all with just over 10 minutes to play, the Nittany Lions went on a 16-7 run over the next seven minutes, capping the spurt when Garner found Stevens for a flush. While Garner would tack on his second trey a minute or so later, PSU closed out its first victory by sinking seven of its last eight looks at the foul line.

Standout Stars…
Stevens paced the Nittany Lions with 24 points, but also grabbed six rebounds and dished out five assists. Carr checked in with 20 points and six boards, while dropping four dimes. Watkins, who pocketed Penn State’s first eight points, closed out his night with 15 points and six rebounds.

Duquesne (1-1) was paced by Mike Lewis II, who scored a team-high 19 points. Lewis bagged three treys after the break to keep things tight, the last pushing the Dukes in front by four (48-44) with 13-plus to play. Darius Lewis added 12 points.

Noteworthy Number(s)...
4: Philly-based products in Penn State’s starting lineup for the second straight game. Joining Garner, were fellow Roman grads Stevens and Carr as well as Phelps School product Watkins.

6: Number of points pocketed by Garner, the Chester native and Roman Catholic High School grad who dropped 25 in Friday night’s loss to Albany. By the way, Garner’s mother, Kim, sang the National Anthem before Sunday’s encounter tipped off. … Also the number of 3-pointers the Nittany Lions cashed after the break.

13: Duquesne’s first-half turnovers, mostly against Penn State’s man-to-man defense. Jim Ferry’s Dukes also coughed up the basketball the first time PSU unveiled its 1-2-2 full-court zone trap in the final 90 seconds of the opening stanza.

81.5: Penn State’s scoring average after two games.

Up Next….
Penn State (1-1) will close out its season-opening three-game homestand Tuesday night (7 p.m.) against Dan Majerle’s Grand Canyon Antelopes (0-1)