Kanye Clary scored 14 points and Zach Hicks and Qudus Wahab each added 12 to fuel host Penn State to an 83-53 victory over Saint Francis (Pa.) on Tuesday in University Park, Pa.
Hicks highlighted his performance with three 3-pointers for the Nittany Lions, who bolted out to a 46-18 lead at halftime. The fast start was enough to propel Penn State to a 3-0 record for the second consecutive campaign and third time in the last five.
Ace Baldwin Jr. collected 11 points and three steals, Demetrius Lilley had eight points and D’Marco Dunn added seven. North Carolina transfer Puff Johnson added six in his season debut. All four players came off the bench.
The Nittany Lions made 43.9 percent of their shots from the floor (29 of 66) and benefited from the 20 turnovers committed by the Red Flash (0-4), who shot just 35.0 percent from the field (21 of 60).
Saint Francis’ Bobby Rosenberger III recorded season-high totals in points (19) and rebounds (eight). He totaled just four points and one rebound over the first three games of the season for the Red Flash.
Tuesday’s game got out of hand in a hurry, as Penn State enjoyed a 16-6 lead before scoring the next 12 points of the game. Hicks drained a pair of 3-pointers to highlight the 12-0 surge.
The Nittany Lions extended their advantage to 30 points at one point before settling for a 46-18 lead at intermission after shooting a sterling 54.8 percent from the floor (17 of 31). Nine different players scored at least one point for Penn State, while St. Francis misfired on its first nine 3-point attempts before Rosenberger drained one with 1:15 remaining in the first half.
The Red Flash scored 11 of the first 16 points in the second half before Clary’s 3-pointer ignited a 16-8 run for Penn State. Nick Kern Jr. threw down an emphatic dunk and Baldwin used a crossover to send a defender to the floor before burying a jumper to push the Nittany Lions’ lead to 69-37 with 6:20 remaining in the second half.
–Field Level Media