Penn State men’s basketball survived a chaotic second-half surge from Chattanooga to secure a 97-93 victory, improving their season record to 2-0. While the final score suggests a blowout, the Mocs dominated the latter stages of the contest, forcing the Nittany Lions into a defensive grind. The decisive factor, however, was not perimeter shooting or interior dominance, but rather an unprecedented volume of free-throw attempts. Penn State’s relentless pressure on the referees paid off in the waning seconds, as the team shattered its own program record for free throws made in a single game.
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The record-breaking performance was sealed by Roko Prkacin, who sank the Nittany Lions’ 43rd free throw of the night with just 0.3 seconds remaining on the clock. Prkacin, who posted the fourth-most points in a Big Ten debut during his first game, remained highly efficient despite a quieter statistical output. He finished with 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field. His Croatian counterpart, Ivan Juric, mirrored this efficiency, contributing 15 points and a staggering 10 free-throw makes. The duo’s ability to convert at the stripe provided the cushion necessary to withstand Chattanooga’s late-game momentum.
Surprisingly, the game’s leading scorer was Josh Reed, who tallied 25 points, with 15 of those coming from the free-throw line. This reliance on the stripe defined the Nittany Lions’ offensive strategy, a trend echoed by French freshman Francois Wibaut, who added 14 points to the total. While the second-half performance was far from polished, the statistical anomaly of 43 made free throws offers a clear takeaway: Penn State’s current offensive identity is built on forcing fouls and capitalizing on the line. As the season progresses, this high-volume free-throw approach may prove to be the team’s most reliable weapon against defensive-minded opponents.
Source: Yahoo Sports
