No. 13 Penn State tops Northwestern 77-61

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Lamar Stevens scored 23 points to lead No. 13 Penn State over Northwestern 77-61 on Saturday.

Myles Dread scored 16 and Jamari Wheeler and Mike Watkins added 11 apiece for the Nittany Lions, who led for all but 6:29 to win their eighth straight.

Boo Buie and Pete Nance had 12 points, Pat Spencer scored 11 and Miller Kopp had 10 for the Wildcats (6-18, 1-13 Big Ten), who lost their ninth in a row.

The Nittany Lions (20-5, 10-4) led 42-28 at halftime and by as many as 18 midway through the second half.

Northwestern chipped away and cut Penn State’s lead to seven with 5:16 left before Dread drained a 3-pointer to help put the game out of reach.

Miller Kopp got the Wildcats started with a 3-pointer that quickly turned into an 11-9 lead for Northwestern. It didn’t last long.

Penn State extended its lead with back-to-back 3-pointers from Dread and Wheeler that sparked a 22-6 run, including a 10-0 stretch, that put Penn State up 35-19.

THE BIG PICTURE

Northwestern: The Wildcats have struggled to shoot and rebound the ball all season. They entered Saturday’s game dead last in the Big Ten in scoring offense, field goal percentage and rebounding offense and didn’t fare much better against the Nittany Lions.

Penn State: After building a double-digit lead, the Nittany Lions had to fend off another late comeback try at home after they almost let Minnesota back it last week.

UP NEXT

Northwestern: Visits No. 9 Maryland on Tuesday.

Penn State: Hosts No. 22 Illinois on Tuesday.