Pittsburgh 78, Penn State 69: Talib Zanna had 16 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks as the Panthers beat the visiting Nittany Lions in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
Lamar Patterson scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half and contributed nine rebounds and five assists for Pittsburgh (8-0). Cameron Wright added 12 points and James Robinson scored six of his 10 in the final five minutes for the Panthers.
Tim Frazier, a former first-team All-Big Ten selection who led the Nittany Lions in scoring as a junior before missing all but four games last season with a torn ACL, scored 27 points to lead Penn State (6-3). D.J. Newbill added 14 of his 18 points in the second half for the Nittany Lions.
The Panthers trailed at halftime for the first time this season at 30-28, but retook the lead the final time on two free throws by Robinson with 5:04 remaining. Robinson followed with fast-break layups off Zanna’s block on Newbill and his own steal, giving the Panthers a 67-62 lead with 2:09 remaining.
Zanna extended the lead to seven and capped the 6-0 run with a jumper. The Panthers protected the lead down the stretch with a three-point play from Patterson and by going 6-for-8 from the foul line over the final 49 seconds.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Pittsburgh improved to 106-3 against visiting non-conference opponents at the 12-year-old Petersen Events Center. … Franco Harris, a former Penn State running back who played 12 of the 13 NFL seasons of his Hall-of-Fame career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, sat courtside. … The Panthers won the previous five meetings against Penn State by an average of 25.8 points.
Penn St. | Pittsburgh | |
Tim Frazier 27 | Scoring | Lamar Patterson 16 |
Tim Frazier 3 | Assists | Lamar Patterson 5 |
Ross Travis 6 | Rebounds | Talib Zanna 10 |
Tim Frazier 7 | Free Throws Made | Cameron Wright 8 |
Tim Frazier 1 | Steals | Durand Johnson 1 |
Donovon Jack 2 | Blocks | Talib Zanna 4 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Penn St. | 69 | 41.8 | 4-15 | 19-23 | 9 | 27 | 5 | 3 | 8 |
Pittsburgh | 78 | 44.4 | 2-11 | 28-35 | 9 | 36 | 5 | 3 | 9 |