CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Junior forward Lamar Stevens led four Nittany Lions in double-figures with 25 points as Penn State took a Big Ten Conference win at Illinois 83-76. Redshirt junior Mike Watkins had his 26th career double-double with 10 points and a game-best 12 rebounds and season-best five blocks in the contest.
"I'm proud of my guys, they stuck to the gameplan," said Penn State men's basketball coach Patrick Chambers. "In the first half, we took care of the ball, in the second half, not so much. We were able to answer some of their runs and I felt that was the difference. It was nice to come out on top today."
It was a milestone game for several Nittany Lions. Stevens moved into the top 10 of Penn State's all-time scoring list, now ninth with 1,556 points. Senior guard Josh Reaves had 11 of his 14 points in the second half with six rebounds. He surpassed two career milestones and now has 503 career rebounds and 301 career assists. Watkins moved into a tie for No. 2 on Penn State's all-time list for career double-doubles as well as No. 2 all-time in blocks with 192.
The Nittany Lions withstood a 13-3 Illinois run down the stretch in the second half and Watkins' critical blocks on two-straight Illini possessions preserved a five-point Penn State lead. Illinois continued to battle and got a basket each from Giorgi Bezhanishvili and Andres Feliz over a minute span. With 2:21 left on the clock and then Trent Frazier hit a trey from the right corner to bring Illinois as close as it had been since the 7:30 mark of the first half, now down by four, 70-66.
Illinois sent Penn State to the foul line 16 times in the final 82 seconds, but the Illini only connected on three of their eight field goal attempts in that span.
Penn State led for 34:23 and was up by as many as 15 points in the second half, but the Illini chipped away at the deficit, using an 8-0 run over 90 seconds to cut the Nittany Lions' lead to seven, 61-54. A steal and score by the Illinois' Ayo Dosunmu brought it to five.
Sophomore guard Jamari Wheeler drove the lane to give Penn State a little more breathing room just under the eight-minute mark, but Doysunmu had another layup before Wheeler went to the line for two more free throws for a 64-58 score.
The Nittany Lions were just under the 50 percent mark for field goal percentage for the game, but held Illinois to a 39.4 field goal percentage, which included a 35.5 mark in the first period.
Penn State led by seven at the break, 39-32, and came out of halftime on a 7-2 run to take a 46-34 lead with 17:42 to play.
Both teams were pretty even in points in the paint (36 PSU to 32 UI) and points off turnovers with a 16-14 advantage to Penn State. The game had 50 combined fouls and 28 turnovers with 12 of the Nittany Lions' total 17 coming in the second half.
The Illini also had four players in double figures, led by Ayo Dosunmu who had all 18 of his points in the second half. Andres Feliz had 17 and Giorgi Bezhanishvili recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Trent Frazier finished with 11.
Penn State returns home to the Bryce Jordan Center Wednesday, Feb. 27 for a 6:30 p.m. ET game vs. Maryland.
For information or to purchase Penn State men's single-game tickets for the next home game vs. Michigan on Tuesday, Feb. 12, 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.
