Talor Battle scored 31 points and Jeff Brooks and David Jackson contributed 16 and 15 respectively, but it wasn't enough for Penn State to hold off Michigan in a 76-69 loss in Ann Arbor on Sunday evening.
The Nittany Lions led by as many as nine in the first half, but after coming out of the locker room cold in the second half, the Lions watched their lead evaporate and eventually succumbed to 57% shooting from the field by the Wolverines.
Penn State's big three scorers contributed 62 of Penn State's 69 points on the night. The rest of the team combined for only seven, and without Billy Oliver's five points, only two. The Lions also struggled at the line, connecting on only 12-18 from the charity stripe.
Little did as much to do in Penn State as the big shooting number by Michigan, however. The Lions looked disorganized on defense are routinely found themselves concedidng open jumpers and inside buckets to the Wolverines by falling out of position and not rotating quickly enough.
The loss drops Penn State to 1-1 in the league entering a five game stretch against ranked opponents that could very well determine whether Penn State will see any meaningful action in March or not. It was likely Penn State's best shot to pick up a league win for a while.
The Lions now prepare for games with Purdue and Michigan State later this week.