City of Basketball Love

Michael Bullock (@thebullp_n)
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STATE COLLEGE — Guess there’s nothing quite like the crashing cymbals or the shrill bells and whistles that can rustle folks out of a deep slumber.

Or the similar commotion that comes following an unacceptable loss.

So, after dealing with the disappointing result that signaled the start of their respective Penn State basketball careers Friday night, Lamar Stevens, Tony Carr and Mike Watkins went back to practice one day later and got themselves plugged back in.

And when they stepped back on the Bryce Jordan Center court Sunday night for yet another 40-minute run, the freshman trio displayed their wide assortment of skills as the Nittany Lions dealt Duquesne an 82-74 setback before the appreciative crowd on hand and the television audience that checked in via the Big Ten Network.

Stevens paced Patrick Chambers’ Nittany Lions with 24 points, grabbed a half-dozen rebounds and shared the team lead with a handful of assists. The 6-7 youngster from Philadelphia’s Roman Catholic High School also buried 12 of his 13 freebies.

Taking the ball strong to the hole was a regular part of Stevens’ effort.

“I was just trying to be aggressive,” Stevens said. “I felt like I could really get to the rack. My teammates, them being the great shooters that they are, that really opened up the lanes for me to drive. I just took advantage of it and my teammates continuously found me around the rim and I was just able to attack and get fouled.”

“Lamar’s a mismatch,” Chambers continued. “He can post-up. Against the zone, he hit a 15-footer. He shot beautiful free throws today. … Lamar’s going to do some great things for us, but we need consistency. That’s what I’m gonna look for on Tuesday.”

Carr, the 6-4 freshman who played alongside Stevens last season at Roman, added 20 points, grabbed a team-high seven boards and dished out four assists. Carr also logged 35 minutes, the most among the nine players Chambers sent into the fray.

Watkins was just as productive, scoring 15 points, snaring six rebounds and blocking five shots during his 27-minute stretch. The 6-9 Watkins also jump-started the Lions, scoring the first six points of the game as Penn State evened its early-season mark at 1-1.

“Mike affects the game in so many different ways,” Stevens said. “He’s a really great rebounder. He’s a great shot blocker. And he can score in the post. Also, he can pass the ball. He’s a much-better passer than people may realize. … He’s a special talent.”

“I feel like Mike’s just a life saver out there,” Carr added. “He helps you if you get beat off the dribble; he’ll block the shot. He’ll get the rebound if you forget to box out. And like Lamar said, you can feed him in the post and he’ll get constant buckets.

“Mike’s kind of like the glue guy for our team.”

Obviously, Duquesne head coach Jim Ferry noticed, too.

“His motor. His motor,” Ferry said of Watkins. “For a young kid, he plays really hard and he’s relentless bothering shots around the rim. He’s an exceptional second jumper.

“He’s not worried about making his first shot, because he’s going and getting another one. That’s something you really can’t touch. Having him on the back line allows them to pressure the guards because they have someone who can block shots.”

Added Chambers: “Mike’s bringing a lot of juice. He’s so raw, so raw. I don’t even know if he knows how good he is. We’re just gonna keep working with him.”

For those keeping track, Stevens, Carr and Watkins shared 34 points, 12 rebounds and four assists in Friday night’s 87-81 loss to visiting Albany.

Needless to say, no one was happy about opening with an L.

“I feel like the season opener kind of gave us a wake-up call,” said Carr, who scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half. “Once we lost, we went back and had a great practice and kind of re-focused as a team.

“We just knew we had to come out with a different mentality to help win games, so we just kind of took it as a wake-up call,” Carr added. “Make sure it doesn’t happen again and just try to come out with that same intensity every game.”

Down 48-44 with 13:21 to play when Mike Lewis II canned the last of his three treys, Chambers called a quick timeout to settle down his youthful group.

While the Nittany Lions responded with an 8-2 spurt — Roman’s Shep Garner bagged a trey to ignite the mini-run, but a Stevens jumper from the foul line extended and Carr’s 3-pointer added needed oomph — the game still was tied 56-56 with 10:19 to go.

“[Chambers] just told us to come out and play hard,” Stevens recalled.” Leave it all on the floor. We really took that message and went out and followed suit.”

Once Stevens connected on a short jumper to snap the game’s final deadlock, Penn State tried to stretch its lead — only to see Duquesne respond with clutch hoops.

When Watkins flushed a Garner dish, Carr added another trey and Stevens turned another Garner dime into another jam, the Lions were up nine (72-63). Seven freebies, four from Carr and three more from Stevens, polished off victory No. 1.

“The freshmen really got comfortable and made some big plays,” Ferry said, referring to the Stevens-Carr-Watkins trio. “Tony Carr really hurt us. We were trying to make him make threes and he did. … Tonight, we were forcing other guys to beat us and they did.”

While satisfied by the result, more work awaits Chambers’ youthful Nittany Lions — especially at the defensive end of the floor and on the glass.

“It’s a process with everything,” Carr said of a Penn State squad that was outrebounded 37-32 by the Dukes and 43-26 in Friday’s loss to Albany. “With rebounding, with assists, with scoring. We just try to get better each and every day in every aspect of the game.

Winning, however, helps that process immeasurably — particularly for those who have played just two college basketball games.