PENN STATE 68, DePAUL 62
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Nov. 17, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (AP) - Helped out by double figure scoring from four Nittany Lions, Penn State men's basketball (2-0) took down DePaul (1-1) 68-62 Tuesday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center.
After picking up two fouls early, Brandon Taylor scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half and Penn State led DePaul whistle to whistle in the Gavitt Tipoff Series.
Shep Garner added 7 of his 16 points in the final two minutes to keep the Blue Demons at bay.
Penn State jumped out to an early lead when Josh Reaves and Garner turned back-to-back steals into easy layups. The Nittany Lion guards combined to score the next eight points, giving Penn State it's largest lead of the half 11-2.
Subbing for Taylor midway through the first, Donovan Jack hit a 3-pointer from the top of the arc to keep Penn State ahead 23-15. But the Blue Demons would chip away at that lead as Penn State closed the first half with a 2-for-10 shooting slump. One of those makes come off Taylor's fingertips and elicited a roar from a full section of Penn State students who sat opposite the teams' benches.
Although he played just nine minutes in the first half, Taylor made up for his early absence by draining a long 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Penn State (2-0) a 31-25 lead at halftime. Taylor started the second where he left off. He scored Penn State's first eight points to put the Nittany Lions ahead 39-29.
The Blue Demons (1-1) pulled closer. Led by Myke Henry's 17 points, DePaul came within 3 multiple times late but missed open chances that could've put them ahead.
Wide open off an inbound play, Darrick Wood fired short on a 3-pointer then missed two foul shots seconds later.
Meanwhile, Garner hit a short jump shot and added one of his three 3-pointers seconds later before Taylor drained another 3-pointer to seal the game.
Billy Garrett Jr. added 14 points for DePaul and Eli Cain chipped in 13. The Blue Demons were held to 20-of-53 shooting (38 percent), made just 2 of 11 3-pointers and turned the ball over 13 times.
Reaves and Payton Banks both added 10 points for Penn State as the Nittany Lions made 22 of 54 field goals (41 percent).
The Blue Demons had their six-game winning streak against Penn State snapped. DePaul and Penn State hadn't met since the 1984-85 season and the Blue Demons were ranked in the Top 5 nationally in each of the last three games in the series.
Coach Patrick Chambers won his 100th game.
Penn State visits Duquesne on Friday.