Penn State men’s basketball (9-2, 1-1 Big Ten) took care of Coppin State (0-12) 99-51 in the Bryce Jordan Center Saturday afternoon. The Nittany Lions got off to a 25-4 lead before the halfway mark of the first half and never looked back.

Yanic Konan Niederhauser led the scoring for Penn State with 14 points, Nick Kern Jr. and Puff Johnson each had 12 points, and Ace Baldwin Jr. had 11.

How It Happened

The game got underway with a Baldwin three on the first possession, followed by a successful and-one by Konan Niederhauser. Peter Oduro started the scoring for Coppin State with a jumper from the corner and Konan Niederhauser converted another and-one opportunity.

Toby Nnadozie made a floater for the Eagles and Johnson’s jumper was good for the Nittany Lions. Freddie Dilione V hit a wide-open three off an inbound and Johnson followed with another bucket to make it 16-4 Penn State.

Zach Hicks started his day with a three from the wing and Kachi Nzeh made a tough layup in the pain to extend the lead to 17. Baldwin’s bounce pass drew open Kern Jr. for an emphatic dunk. Kern then made a fast break layup to make it a 16-0 run.

Kern was fouled on another fast break and made both free throws to make it a 6-0 scoring run for Kern until Dominick Stewart found the scoring column from a pass threaded by Baldwin. Oduro got the sixth point of the afternoon for Coppin State and D’Marco Dunn hit a corner three for the 32-6 lead.

Stewart scored off a fast break and Oduro made another bucket for the Eagles. Johnson was fouled, made both foul shots, and scored on a fast break to make it 38-8. Baldwin and Dilione made layups but Nnadozie hit a three for Coppin State’s 11th point of the contest.

Nzeh made a layup in the paint but Cam’ron Brown made a second-chance bucket and Nnadozie converted an and-one to make it an 8-2 scoring run for the Eagles. Kern ended the run with a bucket inside and Konan Niederhauser made an easy layup for the 48-16 lead.

Camaren Sparrow converted a layup for Coppin State but Konan Niederhauser made a layup and then slammed down an alley-oop for his 12th point of the game. Sparrow was fouled and made both shots from the line and Oduro found two more points in the paint.

Dunn missed a three but raced down to the other end and swatted a fast break layup off the glass as the half ended with Penn State up 52-21.

Oduro started the second half with a bucket on the Eagles’ first possession and Penn State started with three straight misses on its first possession. Baldwin scored off a fast break for the Nittany Lions’ first points of the half as Oduro knocked down another jumper to make it 54-25 Penn State.

Baldwin floated an alley-oop for Dilione and Nzeh made both free throws after being fouled. Sparrow dropped in a contested layup and Dilione did the same at the opposite end. Hicks nailed a three and Dunn made a layup to make it 65-27.

Dunn made another layup and Stewart hit a three to extend Penn State’s lead to 41. Baldwin dropped in an easy layup, Kern did the same off of a Baldwin assist, and Kern drained two free throws to make it 74-31. Darius Leonard sunk a corner three for Coppin State and Konan Niederhauser dunked an alley-oop over the head of Oduro for the 78-34 lead.

Johnson laid in a running hook shot and Oduro got some payback when he hit a corner three in the face of Konan Niederhauser for his 15th point. Baldwin made two free throws and Johnson made a layup as Penn State held a 41-point lead.

Stewart hit a three from the wing but the Eagles came down and scored two straight. Jahvin Carter drained a three and did the same moments later to make it 93-47. The reserves took care of business as the Nittany Lions finished the game with a 99-51 victory.

Takeaways

• Baldwin really likes to pass the ball. The veteran point guard notched his 700th career assist in the first half and now holds Penn State’s single-game assist record with 16 after his performance against Coppin State.
• Despite the high scoring, the Nittany Lions did not shoot well from distance. Penn State finished shooting 32.4% from three but 56.7% from the field.
• The tough season continues for Coppin State. The Eagles fall to 0-12 for the first time since the 2018-19 season where they suffered an 0-15 start before recording their first win. Coppin State’s leading scorer was Oduro with 15 points and the team shot 9-for-32 from the field against Penn State.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions return to the court against Drexel at noon on Saturday, December 21. The game will be played at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia and can be streamed on FloSports.