Nov. 4, 2017
Box Score -- Penn State 102, Lafayette 80 -- Exhibition
EASTON, Pa. -- - In a fitting end to the exhibition game to support hurricane relief efforts, sophomore guard and Houston-area native Grant Hazle hit a jumper for the final points in Penn State's 102-80 win over Lafayette at the Kirby Center Nov. 4.
"This was an awesome experience for us to be able to do something to help others, support the hurricane relief efforts, and Grant (Hazle) was able to play," said Penn State men's basketball coach Patrick Chambers. "Grant's father traveled from Houston for this game and was able to watch today."
Sophomore guard Tony Carr led all scorers with 23 points as four Nittany Lions finished the game in double figures. Senior guard Shep Garner had 18 points, all on three-point field goals, and Nazeer Bostick finished with 12 points. Josh Reaves went 8-9 from the field for 16 points and led Penn State on the boards with six.
PSU opened the second half with a 10-2 run to quickly push its lead to 24 points. Reaves scored three field goals in that three-minute stretch, which included grabbing a steal and converting it into a layup. The Nittany Lions shot 56.7 percent in the second half and 54.4 for the game, in part due to the second-half start that witnessed Penn State make seven of its first eight shots.
"As a whole, our team in the second half played really well," said Penn State men's basketball coach Patrick Chambers. "We had to get a little bit adjusted and to give Lafayette credit, they cut really hard, they cut with purpose and their offense is very direct. He's (O'Hanlon) a guru when it comes to that. One we adjusted to the speed, we were able to do some more things in the second half -- turn them over a little more, make them a little more uncomfortable. Our goal is to do that for an entire game."
Lamar Stevens scored seven of his nine points in the second period and had a game-best four steals. Penn State had 12 steals to Lafayette's two and forced the Leopards into 20 total turnovers. Carr and Garner had 15 points each in the first half of action as Penn State took a 53-39 lead into the locker room. The Leopards cut the lead to five points with five minutes remaining in the first half, but a 11-4 run put Penn State up 47-35 just before the end of the period.
Senior Matt Klinewski had 21 points as Lafayette's leading scorer while Lukas Jarrett had nine rebounds on the afternoon.
The Nittany Lions return to the Bryce Jordan Center at noon on Sunday, Nov. 5 for their second and final exhibition game against Bloomsburg. The 2017-18 regular season opener is slated for Friday, Nov. 10 against Campbell with a 4 p.m. tip time to start Penn State's homecoming weekend activities. Season tickets are available for all 19 games at the Bryce Jordan Center with 18 home events and Sunday's exhibition game against Bloomsburg at noon on Sunday, November 5.
Deposits for new 2017-18 Penn State men's basketball season tickets can be made by calling 1-800-NITTANY weekdays, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Eastern time, at the Athletic Ticket Office in the Bryce Jordan Center from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. weekdays, or by visiting gopsusports.com/tickets/m-baskbl-tickets.html.
Keep up to date with the latest information from Coach Chambers and the Nittany Lions on Twitter by following @Coach_Chambers and @PennStateMBB, on Facebook and Instagram at @PennStateMBB.
NOTES: For Penn State fans unable to attend the exhibition game at Lafayette, donations to support the relief efforts can be made online through OneAmericaAppeal.org… All ticket and concessions sales for the game at the Kirby Center benefited relief efforts through One America Appeal to assist those affected by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria…Lafayette's sophomore guard Hunter Janacek is also a Houston resident…Nittany Lion junior forward Deivis Zemgulis and Lafayette's Paulis Zayls are both from Kaunas, Lithuania, and had the opportunity to visit prior to the game.