What We Learned From Penn State Basketball's Near Disaster vs. Chattanooga

The Nittany Lions nearly gave away a 23-point halftime lead but held on to win behind Josh Reed and their foul shooting.

Penn State Nittany Lions forward Josh Reed (10) drives to the basket against the Chattanooga Mocs during the first half of the game at Bryce Jordan Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

STATE COLLEGE | When Penn State men’s basketball coach Mike Rhoades walked into his team’s locker room Thursday night, players were as quiet as if they just lost. The Nittany Lions had given up 62 points in the second half to Chattanooga, so though Penn State defeated the Mocs 97-93 at the Bryce Jordan Center, they didn’t feel like they had won. 

“That says something about the group of guys we have and their standard for each other,” Rhoades said after his squad improved to 2-0. “I like that. We just got work to do.”

It was a tale of two halves for the Nittany Lions, who led by 23 points at halftime before the Mocs drew within three points near the end of the game. Forward Josh Reed practically saved the night for Penn State, scoring a team-high 25 points with five rebounds and five steals.

Here’s what we learned about the Nittany Lions, who are demanding early season improvements from themselves.

A near second-half disaster  

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Mike Rhoades reacts from the bench during the first half against the Chattanooga Mocs at Bryce Jordan Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State cruised to a 54-31 advantage at halftime. The Nittany Lions allowed just four field goals in the final nine minutes of play and looked to score their second blowout victory this week.

But that didn’t happen, and guard Dasonte Bowen said Penn State got too complacent.

“When you grab a big league like that in the first half, it's kind of easy to get relaxed,” Bowen said. “That's something we're trying to nip in the butt early on, getting those leads and then extending them in the second half.”

After closing the first half with suffocating defense, the Nittany Lions were more suspect on the defensive end in the second. Chattanooga found open looks from beyond the arc, helping guard Kobe McDowell-White to drop 28 points.

It was getting messy inside, too. The Mocs scored 42 points in the paint despite Penn State often using lineups that gave it a size advantage. For much of the game, the Nittany Lions had at least three players on the court who were 6-7 or taller, sometimes even four. Chattanooga only had two players above 6-7 in its main rotation.

“I think they made some adjustments to go on us quicker, attack certain matchups, put us in space, and I didn't think we guarded the ball well today,” Rhoades said. “We got to guard the ball at a high level, and we got to help.”

Chattanooga head coach Dan Earl, a former Penn State player, said he challenged his players during halftime. He knew the size disadvantage but wanted his team to play more free after starting the game looking nervous.

“You still have to be aggressive, and I think the guys just kind of let go a little bit,” Earl said. “They were like, ‘Okay, coach told us to screw it, go play hard and go attack.’ I think we were much more north-south and attacking in the second half.”

Josh Reed leads Penn State’s effort at the free-throw line

Penn State Nittany Lions forward Josh Reed (10) attempts to steal the ball away from Chattanooga Mocs forward Yonatan Levy (18) during the first half of the game at Bryce Jordan Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State won this game with foul shots. The Nittany Lions practically lived at the free-throw line, going 43-for-49 at the stripe after drawing 33 fouls on Chattanooga.

Reed led by making 15 of 16 free throws to match his career high in points. His veteran presence was evident as he played steady in the second half while some teammates made mistakes.

“He's our anchor,” Bowen said. “He's the vet here. He's been here before, and it's kind of expected from him. It was a great game from him, but I think we all expect that from him.”

Penn State almost turned the ball over when Chattanooga was pressing, but Reed broke free and got a layup to make it a 93-86 game with 25 seconds left. A couple of minutes earlier, Reed made a layup, recorded his fifth steal and drew a foul in the matter of seconds, and he made both ensuing free throws.

Without Reed, the Nittany Lions likely would not have won. They needed someone who knew how to execute in close situations, and Reed was exactly that player.

Roberts Blums will miss time with injury

Penn State Nittany Lions guard Roberts Blums (45) looks to shoot vs, the Canisius Golden Griffins during the first half of the game at Bryce Jordan Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State’s rotation was without guard Roberts Blums, who will miss a “couple weeks” with a broken finger, Rhoades said. The Davidson transfer will try to return sooner, Rhoades said.

“Knowing Rob, it could be tomorrow,” Rhoades said jokingly.

Blums, who shot 40 percent from 3-point range last season, couldn’t help with Penn State’s 3-point shooting, which had another lackluster game by knocking down 6-of-23 shots from downtown. Wing Brant Byers took seven attempts and missed all of them. 

But Rhoades doesn’t seem too concerned. The Nittany Lions generated quality looks but couldn’t knock them down.

“We missed some threes that were wide open, but they were good ones and they were within the offense, off of a play, what we're trying to run or inside-outside action,” Rhoades said. “I love when guys drive it and kick it, and that inside-outside three, I think, is the easiest one to make.”

It’s still something worth monitoring even though Rhoades isn’t making too much of a deal out of it. Since the exhibition game against Drexel, Penn State has shot 12-for-54 from 3-point range (22.2 percent). At some point, the Nittany Lions need to knock down their shots.

That will be especially important in their next game, when the Nittany Lions face Pitt inside the Palestra in Philadelphia at 8 p.m. Sunday. ESPN2 will televise the matchup, which is Penn State’s first against a power-conference team this season.

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