Alphonzo Billups III shot 5-for-6 from 3-point range on his way to scoring a career-high 23 points, leading VCU past Penn State 86-74 in the seventh-place game of the ESPN Events Invitational on Sunday in Kissimmee, Fla.
Zeb Jackson tallied a career-best 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists as the Rams (4-3) got the best of their former coach, Mike Rhoades, who left VCU for the Penn State job last spring.
Max Shulga scored 19 points with 10-for-10 foul shooting and added six rebounds. Toibu Lawal scored 11 points for VCU, which scored 20 fast-break points and outrebounded Penn State 36-29.
The Nittany Lions (4-3) lost their third straight game despite receiving a season-high 27 points from Ace Baldwin Jr. Qudus Wahab tied his season best with 14 points and D’Marco Dunn added a season-high 11.
Penn State leading scorer Kanye Clary, who had a career-high 28 points in the previous round against Butler, played three minutes before leaving the game. He was later seen on the bench with his right arm wrapped.
Clary returned to the game for six minutes in the second half but was unable to score before subbing back out.
Penn State was ahead 21-19 with 8:03 left in the first half before VCU started pulling away. Billups made his first 3-pointer amid a 12-4 run, and a 13-5 VCU surge late in the half made it a nine-point game.
After Zach Hicks made the first of two foul shots with 8 seconds left, teammate Puff Johnson rebounded the shot and put it back for a three-point possession, trimming Penn State’s halftime deficit to 46-40.
Baldwin scored a quick five points in the second half, and Wahab’s four straight points put Penn State back in the lead at 49-48.
The Nittany Lions made it 55-52 before Billups tied the game with a 3-pointer and Shulga got a steal and fast-break dunk to swing it back the Rams’ way.
Lawal’s big two-handed slam made it 66-59, but Baldwin answered right away by banking in a triple. That’s when Billups made 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to grab VCU the momentum for the final stretch.
Billups added a transition layup and a 3 to build an 80-66 cushion in the final minutes.
–Field Level Media