Colter, Duquesne beat Penn State 78-52
PITTSBURGH (AP) Duquesne knew it would have to live or die by the 3-pointer against Penn State. The Dukes were alive and well after hitting a program-record 17 3-pointers on their way to a 78-52 win at Consol Energy Center on Friday.
Derrick Colter hit six of those 17 on nine attempts from 3-point range and scored 26 points to tie his career high. Duquesne (3-0) took a 52-30 lead on Colter's fourth 3 with 14:41 remaining.
''It's all about my team. I'm not a one-man show,'' Colter said. ''I give respect to all my teammates and they helped me out. I was feeling good today.''
The Dukes finished 50 percent from behind the arc, where they took 34 of their 54 shots, while the Nittany Lions (2-1) made 29.7 percent of their field goals.
Duquesne coach Jim Ferry said he knew the Dukes would have drill jump shots because of Penn State's size, but was was more impressed with his team's defense, which rebounded from allowing at least 71 points in each of its previous two games.
''We played extremely unselfish defensively,'' Ferry said. ''Guys were really there for each other. I felt like they were frustrated a little bit because of how consistent we were defensively, taking away their space and play.''
Micah Mason and Jeremiah Jones chipped in 14 and 11 points for Duquesne, respectively.
Brandon Taylor led Penn State with 14 points. The Nittany Lions were unavailable for comment following the game, but Jones said he didn't feel like Penn State played any differently once the game began slipping away.
''I think they still continued to play hard,'' Jones said. ''I just think that with our mindset, it was to not let up.''
The Dukes had a strong first half and carried the momentum into the second. L.G. Gill hit a 3-pointer 38 seconds in to give Duquesne a 40-26 lead. Colter and Mason added back-to-back 3s, while Penn State only answered with Jordan Dickerson's tip-in, to make it 46-28.
Penn State led by 1 with 3:14 remaining in the first half by hitting back-to-back 3-pointers. The Dukes answered with a 12-0 run to close the half.
Penn State's Isaiah Washington missed a second consecutive 3-pointer before Duquesne's Darius Lewis increased the Dukes' lead to 34-26 on a dunk with 1:51 left. Colter extended it to 36-26 on a fast-break layup with 44 seconds remaining. Eric James' free throw sent Duquesne to the half up by 11.
Neither team held more than a 2-point lead through the majority of the first half. Taylor's 3-point field goal cut Penn State's deficit to 17-15 with 10:58 remaining. The Nittany Lions took the lead four times through the rest of the half, the last time at 26-25 on Deividas Zemgulis' free throws.
Duquesne outrebounded the larger Nittany Lions 42-37.
''I just think we out-toughed them tonight,'' Gill said. ''We were more aggressive.''
TIP-INS
Penn State: Prior to its loss Friday, the Nittany Lions had allowed an average of 56 points in two wins against VMI and DePaul.
Duquesne: The Dukes averaged 95.5 points in their two wins entering Friday.
SERIES HISTORY
Duquesne's 26-point margin of victory is its largest in the history of its series against Penn State. The Nittany Lions and Dukes met for the 47th time Friday, dating back to 1924. They have met in six consecutive seasons with Penn State winning four of the previous five.
UP NEXT
Penn State plays Radford at Bryce Jordan Center on Tuesday.
Duquesne plays its opening game of the Gulf Coast Showcase against Pepperdine in Estero, Fla. on Monday.
