Penn State Basketball: Nittany Lions Beat Cornell, 74-67

The final nonconference game of every season is a critical transition period into the stress and physicality of the Big Ten. A loss heading in to conference play can start a downward spiral against talented opponents, whereas a win can start the journey off in the right direction.

Penn State men’s basketball took a positive stride Wednesday evening, beating a talented Cornell team, 74-67, in front of a supportive holiday crowd.

The Nittany Lions had a season-high 30 points off of the bench, a statistic highlighted by Cam Woodyard, who was strong offensively. He scored 13 points, hitting several big shots at the free-throw line as well as going 3-3 from behind the arc.

Woodyard, who is the only senior on the team, has struggled throughout his career to find consistency shooting the ball. But he has stepped into his role nicely this season, shooting a higher percentage, and has led the team on and off the court.

Freshman guard Trey Lewis was another bright spot, shooting 4-6 from three-point range, and was a critical boost in the game’s final minutes. Lewis, who has been battling a right ankle injury all season, has finally begun to see his minutes increase, as well as his production.

“I just go out there and shoot with great confidence,” Lewis said. His 13-point game was his third career double-digit performance.

Penn State broke the 70-point mark for the sixth time this season, surpassing last year’s mark of only five games. The Nittany Lions have seen increased production from their bench and consistent scoring from multiple players every game.

As in most of their games this season, the Nittany Lions started slow, allowing Cornell to jump out to an early 12-5 lead after hitting four of its first five three-pointers. Penn State was able to slow down the Big Red attack and climbed back into the game despite turning the ball over 10 times in the first half.

“We need to do the little things right. These are problems we can fix ourselves,” Coach Pat Chambers said. The Nittany Lions’ 10 turnovers in the first half were mostly unforced by Cornell, and Penn State turned the ball over only twice in the second half.

“We shot ourselves in the foot a little bit,” Chambers said. “I say it all the time: Do the ordinary extraordinary. Take care of the basketball and take shots. There are going to be nights when we don’t make shots, and that’s going to happen again. But as long as we’re defending and playing hard, we’re giving ourselves a chance.”

The Nittany Lions opened up the game with a 9-0 run early in the second half, but Cornell was able to climb back in, tying it up at 49 with just under 10 minutes to play. The game would stay close until the final two minutes, when key plays by Tim Frazier and Jermaine Marshall closed the game out for the Nittany Lions. Penn State shot 30 attempts from the line and connected on 22 of them.

Frazier was especially strong from the line, going 9-13 as part of his 17-point, 11-rebound outing. He struggled early in the game to find the basket, but like so many times this season was able to improve his performance in the second half. His double-double was his fourth of the year.

Penn State moves on to 8-5 on the year and will have a few days off next week before returning for a special two-a-day session, then heading out to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan to open up Big Ten play.

“Back on the 26th,’ Chambers said, smiling. “Two-a-days, a double session. Clear out those brownies and mom’s home cooking.”

Related coverage

• StateCollege.com’s Penn State basketball page