Warriors Lead at Halftime in 66-52 Exhibition Loss at Penn State

STATE COLLEGE – East Stroudsburg University led 26-25 at halftime and was within 46-43 with 9:00 left in the second half before Penn State pulled away for a 66-52 win in exhibition men's basketball on Sunday afternoon at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Sophomore forward Terrance King, the reigning PSAC East Freshman of the Year, had 10 points, four rebounds and two blocked shots to lead the Warriors, the PSAC East preseason favorites after last year’s run to the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Junior guard Russell Graham III had nine points, five rebounds and three assists in his first action for the Warriors and junior forward Eric Bryan chipped in with eight points and was 4-for-6 from the field before fouling out.

Talor Battle, a two-time All-Big Ten selection, led the Nittany Lions with 16 points, four rebounds and three assists in 25 minutes. Tim Frazier and Billy Oliver had 10 points each. Oliver hit consecutive three-pointers as part of an 8-0 run that gave Penn State a 44-36 cushion before the Warriors came back with a three-pointer by sophomore forward Marcus Brown and a bucket by Graham that made it 44-41.

Bryan's jumper brought ESU within 46-43 at the 9-minute mark before the Nittany Lions scored the next six points and eventually stretched the lead to double-figures with just over four minutes to play.

The Warriors held Penn State to a 30-percent mark from the field (9-for-30) and forced 10 turnovers in the first half to post their 26-25 halftime lead.

The Nittany Lions led 10-4 at the 15-minute mark but ESU chipped back with a jumper by Graham and two free throws by King while holding Penn State scoreless for 4:01. Bryan and King scored the Warriors’ next two buckets to make it 13-12 with 8:59 left in the first half and a three-pointer by junior guard Micah Covert tied the score at 19-all with 3:48 on the clock.

Penn State scored the next four points, on a putback by Andrew Jones and a steal and layup by Taran Buie, but ESU responded with a 7-0 run over the next 3:00 to go up by three.

King hit a pair of free throws to start the run and was 4-for-5 at the line on the afternoon. Sophomore guard Blair Ramsey converted a three-point play to give ESU a 24-23 lead, and senior guard Mike DeMarco scored on a reverse layup on an assist from Covert for a 26-23 advantage. Battle scored at the other end for Penn State to close the margin to one at halftime.

The Warriors led twice in the second half – first on a dunk by King on a pass from Graham on an out-of-bounds play, and then on a three-pointer by sophomore forward Duane Johnson that put the Warriors in front 31-30 with 16:25 on the clock.

A 6-0 spurt gave Penn State a 36-31 lead but ESU continued to display its resiliency. Covert hit his second three-pointer of the game on the Warriors’ next possession, and Ramsey drew a foul and made both free throws to tie the game, 36-all, with less than 13 minutes to play.

Oliver replied for the Nittany Lions with his back-to-back three-pointers to stretch the lead back to six and Battle made it an eight-point game with a basket in the paint. After Brown hit a three-pointer and Graham scored to pull ESU within three, DeMarco threw in a desperation save from the corner in front of the Warriors’ bench that appeared to tie the game at 44-all before it was waved off, as the officials ruled that he stepped on the end line.

The Warriors’ exhibition trip to Penn State, their second in seven years, will be followed by a trip to Binghamton for another exhibition game on Wednesday in Vestal, NY.

ESU opens the 2010-11 regular season next Saturday