| Sophomore Geary Claxton posted his fourth double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds in a 74-54 victory over Purdue Wednesday. |
Box Score
Game Notes
Post-Game Quotes
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., Jan. 18, 2006 - Having circled the date as a win it needed to have, Penn State left no doubt Wednesday in the Bryce Jordan Center as the Nittany Lions shot nearly 53 percent from the field and blew by Purdue (7-9; 1-4 Big Ten) for a 74-54 victory. The 20-point win was Penn State's largest in Big Ten play since downing Purdue 92-71 during the 2000-01 season. The Lions shot better than 50 percent for the eighth time on the year and their 52.8-percent shooting (28-53) was their first outing over 50 percent in Big Ten play since the 2002-03 season and the best Big Ten shooting percentage since hitting 56.3 percent in an 81-68 win over Purdue in the Jordan Center on Feb. 16, 2002.
Penn State improved to 10-5 on the year (2-2 in the Big Ten) and ended a five-game losing streak to the Boilermakers with the emphatic victory. It marked the most wins in Coach Ed DeChellis's three-year tenure and Penn State's most in a season since going 21-12 in 2000-01.
Sophomore Geary Claxton posted his fourth double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds and made numerous highlight reel aerial plays including a big block at the end of the first half and several dunks in the second half. Freshman Jamelle Cornley, the leading freshman scorer in the Big Ten, continued his fantastic play scoring 18 points and grabbing six boards on the night while shooting seven of nine from the field. Senior Travis Parker kicked in 10 points and five boards and sophomore Mike Walker continued to be a big spark off the bench with 10 points and two-of-three shooting from the three-point arc.
"This win is important for us," Penn State Head Coach Ed DeChellis said. "It's been a tough two or three days. You look at the schedule and you can't afford to stub your toe on this one. This is one you circle and say we've got to have. It's a statement game for the players. They understand the importance of coming out and playing well and getting a win."
With the game tied at 22 with five minutes to play in the first half, Penn State went on a 13-5 run to grab a 35-27 halftime advantage. The run started when Walker picked the ball up out of scramble and made a circus, behind-the-head pass to Cornley who finished in the paint. Walker then scored the next five points as he downed a two-point jumper and then took a nice touch pass from freshman Milos Bogetic and drained a three-pointer from the right corner for a 29-22 lead. Cornley pushed the lead to 31-22 with a bucket in the lane before Purdue's Chris Lutz answered with a three. Walker hit another jumper to push the lead back to 33-25. Purdue closed back to 33-27 before Claxton and Cornley combined to send Penn State to the locker room on a high. Claxton turned the ball over on the offensive end but then hustled to the other end of the floor, elevated and rejected Bryant Dillon's lay-up attempt. Walker scooped up the ball, kicked it ahead to a sprinting Cornley who finished with a one-handed dunk as the halftime buzzer sounded.
"I thought Geary played well," DeChellis said. "He is active on the wings on offense and defense. I think 'G' has really played hard the last three games. He understands this is the time you've go to go."
Penn State went on a 17-5 run to start the second half and pushed the lead to 20 at 52-32 with 13:48 to play. Claxton had six points in the run while Ben Luber converted a steal into a lay-up and added a three-pointer, one of five Nittany Lions to hit from behind the arc on the night as Penn State shot 58 percent (7-of-12) from three-point range.
"We said at halftime the first five minutes it's 0-0 and we've got to go back to work and extend the lead," DeChellis said. Penn State hounded Purdue with a variety of defenses on the night, playing a 2-3 and 1-3-1 zone, half court man-to-man, and a trapping full court with a press.
"We're like guerillas," DeChellis said. "We want to hit and get out. We're not where we can sustain one thing and make a living on it for the whole game."
Purdue cut the lead back to 10 with 10:09 to play as Dillon drained a three to cap a 13-3 run, but Penn State quickly reestablished control and when Claxton put down his third dunk of the half off a steal and assist from Walker, the Nittany Lions had a 22-point lead with 1:34 to play.
Penn State held Purdue to just 38 percent shooting on the night and out-rebounded the Boilermakers 29-28 to improve to 10-2 when out-rebounding opponents on the season. The win improved Penn State to 9-2 at home on the year, the Lions' most home victories since going 10-4 in the Jordan Center in the 2000-01 season. Penn State takes on No. 16 Ohio State Saturday at 12:00 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center. Season and single game tickets for all Penn State home games are available by calling the Penn State Athletic Ticket Office at 814-863-1000 or 800-833-5533. For groups of 10 or more, ticket discounts and preferred seating options are available by calling 814-863-6757.