UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State never trailed in the 78-61 win over No. 17 Maryland at the Bryce Jordan Center Wednesday night as junior forward Lamar Stevens led all scorers with 24 points. The victory was the third this season for the Nittany Lions over a ranked team and they have won three-straight games and five of their last seven.
"We're getting better," said Penn State men's basketball coach Patrick Chambers. "We played really good basketball out there today. I thought we played with energy and enthusiasm. Maryland, watching them on film, they're, without question, one of the best teams in this league and we just had a good day and they didn't....We improved and our identity really showed by holding them to 20 points [in the first half], defending and rebounding, a lot of communication out there…We'll enjoy this tonight, but tomorrow when we get back to practice, I'm going to make sure they know to keep improving because it's there. That's what makes it exciting going down the stretch here."
Penn State grabbed a double-digit lead in the first 5:02 of the game as freshman guard Myles Dread had two of his four 3-pointers and jumpers by Stevens and Rasir Bolton set the tone for the game.
Maryland went 2-9 from the field at the start of the game as the Terrapins tied the game at 3-3 at the 18:34 mark, but went without points for the next four minutes. A jumper by Aaron Wiggins at 11:18 cut the lead to seven, but seven-straight points by Dread and a layup by Mike Watkins pushed the score to 27-11 with 7:31 to play.
Baskets by six different Nittany Lions from that point until halftime put Penn State up 42-20 at the break with 12 points coming off eight Terp turnovers.
A 3-pointer and dunk by Stevens early in the second half put the Nittany Lions up by 25. Maryland changed its lineup and the two teams traded baskets fairly evenly over the next eight minutes. An 8-2 run by Maryland over two minutes dropped the deficit to 16, at 68-52, but John Harrar responded with back-to-back layups to finish Penn State's scoring from the field.
Stevens moved to No. 7 on Penn State's all-time scoring list with his 24 points, now with 1,580 points. Senior guard Josh Reaves had four steals which gave him sole possession of the No. 2 spot on Penn State's career steals list with 240.
Sophomore guard Jamari Wheeler tied his career best with seven assists and has a 2.47 to 1 assist-to-turnover radio in his last 12 starts. Freshman guard Myreon Jones had 10 points on the night going 4-5 from the field with two triples. Sophomore forward John Harrar tied career bests for points and steals with nine and three, respectively.
Anthony Cowan Jr. scored 12 of his Maryland team-high 15 points in the second half. Wiggins finished with 11 points while Bruno Fernando and Jalen Smith each had nine. Fernando collected a game-high eight rebounds.
Penn State plays its next two games on the road, at #19/18 Wisconsin at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 2, and at Rutgers on Wednesday, March 6. The Nittany Lions return home to celebrate their seniors and alumni weekend on Sunday, March 10.
For information or to purchase Penn State men's single-game tickets for the final home game, visit GoPSUsports.com/mbbsinglegametix or call 1-800-NITTANY, weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
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.
Penn State Tops No. 17 Maryland for Third Straight Win
Opens in a new window PDF Box Score: PSU 78, UMD 61 Opens in a new window Chambers one-on-one with Mitch Gerber Opens in a new window Stevens one-on-one with Mitch Gerber Opens in a new window Lamar Stevens Postgame Press Conference Opens in a new window Patrick Chambers Postgame Press Conference Opens in a new window Quotes: Maryland Head Coach Mark Turgeon Opens in a new window Quotes: Lamar Stevens Opens in a new window Quotes: Head Coach Patrick Chambers Opens in a new window Postgame Notes vs. No. 17 Maryland