NICEVILLE, FLA. – Penn State closed out the first half with a 14-1 run and was never threatened en route to a victory past Oregon State in the third-place game of the Emerald Coast Classic at Raider Arena on the campus of Northwest Florida State College Saturday.
Oregon State, dropping its sixth straight game, was ice cold from the floor, shooting a season-low 31.4 percent in addition to its season low offensive output.
Senior Guard Jalen Pickett paced a balanced Penn State attack with 14 points and seven assists, while guard Myles Dread tallied 12 points and forward Seth Lundy added 11 points.
Guard Jarod Lucas led Oregon State with 11 points.
The Beavers missed their last seven shots of the first half during a 2:20 stretch. And Penn State took advantage of the scoring drought by Oregon State by closing out the first half with a 14-1 run to enjoy a 29-17 halftime lead.
A three-point basket by Myles Dread with 18:04 left in the game extended the lead to 34-19 forcing Oregon State to take an early second-half timeout.
“I’m just excited about coming down here and finishing it the right way,” said Penn State coach Micah Shrewsberry. “Last night’s game (vs. LSU) took a lot out of us. It is a quick turnaround to get to today. I thought we started a little bit sluggish and we didn’t quite have our legs under us.
“But, Oregon State had an overtime game too and started later than we did. Even when we started sluggish, we still defended and guarded. That’s something we have been working on every game and I’m proud of our guys. It was a total team effort. Everybody that played really helped out. I think we are taking steps and heading in the right direction.”
Penn State outrebounded Oregon State, 35-29, with Lundy and Jalanni White each grabbing a team-high seven rebounds.
