UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's basketball team dropped a 76-67 decision to Bucknell Saturday afternoon inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
Qudus Wahab led Penn State with 18 points and eight rebounds, also adding three assists. Ace Baldwin Jr. scored 17 points, including a perfect 7-for-7 effort from the free throw line, and chipped in three assists and four steals. Zach Hicks rounded out Penn State's double-digit scorers with 13 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Six points from Qudus Wahab and a Zach Hicks triple helped Penn State get out to a quick 9-2 lead just over two minutes into the game.
- The Nittany Lions went cold over the next few minutes as Bucknell used a 12-7 run over an 8:05 stretch to take a short-lived 20-19 lead at the 7:39 mark. A Wahab layup followed to snap the streak and Penn State held the Bison scoreless for the next 5:34 as the Nittany Lions jumped back in front, 25-20, with under five minutes to play in the opening half.
- The Bison were back within one at 28-27, but Penn State scored the final five points of the first half to take a 33-27 lead into halftime.
- Buckets from Wahab and Ace Baldwin Jr. opened the second half to give the Nittany Lions their largest lead yet at 37-27 just over a minute into the final frame.
- The Bison made seven of their next nine shots to fuel a 16-6 streak over the next 6:20 that knotted the score at 43-43 with 11:38 to play.
- The lead changed hands five times over the next seven minutes as neither team could find separation until the final minutes.
- Penn State went up by one point at the 3:09 mark on a jumper by Baldwin Jr, but Bucknell scored 10 of the next 13 to take a 69-63 lead with less than two minutes to go. The Bison would not relinquish their lead and claimed the 76-67 win.
GAME NOTES
- The Bison made 10 3-pointers and shot 47.6 percent (10-21) from deep, while Penn State was just 4-for-19 (21.1%) from 3-point range.
- Qudus Wahab finished with a season-high 18 points and was 7-for-8 from the floor.
- Zach Hicks scored a season-high 13 points.
- Puff Johnson and Leo O'Boyle both made their first starts in a Penn State uniform.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Mike Rhoades
Senior Puff Johnson
UP NEXT
- The Nittany Lions open Big Ten play Wednesday night when Penn State travels to Maryland for a 7 p.m. tipoff on the Big Ten Network.
- Penn State will then return home for its Big Ten home opener on Saturday, Dec. 9 vs. Ohio State at 6 p.m. inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
The 2023-24 Penn State men's basketball season is presented by Highmark Health.