Penn State coach Patrick Chambers wasn't happy with his team's 13 turnovers in a loss against Lafayette on Wednesday night back in Happy Valley.
He was even less thrilled with the Nittany Lions' 23 in their 66-59 loss against Duquesne on Saturday night at the CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh.
"Twenty-three is too many," Chambers said after the game. "I've got to do a better job of continuing to teach where to be on the floor and how to meet passes and want the basketball,"
The Lions dominated the Dukes 39-28 on the boards and outshot their opponents 42.9%-41.5%. The Dukes' extra opportunities off the turnovers, however, proved fatal for a Penn State team that fell to 1-3 away from the Bryce Jordan Center this season.
Early in the year, the Lions were on the other end of the turnover margin. They forced 26 in their season-opening win against Hartford and followed that up with 16 forced turnovers against Radford on Nov. 14.
Now, however, Chambers and his team are looking for answers to what is increasingly becoming a giveaway problem.
"When you're in a tight game and you're on the road, you get a little nervous," Chambers said. "We've got a youthful team. Inexperienced team. They were a little tight, made poor decisions."
Billy Oliver and Jermaine Marshall were Penn State's worst turnover offenders, giving the ball away four times each.
Senior guard Tim Frazier had three turnovers, but otherwise rebounded fairly well from an 0-12 shooting performance against Lafayette by scoring 15 points to lead the team. Marshall got into double figures as well with 12 points on 5-13 shooting.
Chambers still wants more from is captain Frazier, though moving forward.
"He's got to take 20 shots. He only took nine," Chambers said. "I'd like to see him put it up more. He's not used to that role."
Penn State will take the next week off for finals before returning to action on Dec. 18 against Mount St. Mary's back at the Bryce Jordan Center.
NOTES: Freshman guard Trey Lewis returned to Penn State's lineup after missing the Lafayette game and playing limited minutes against Mississippi on Sunday with an aggravated ankle injury. He played eight minutes, committed three fouls and was 0-1 shooting from the field...Freshman forward Jonathan Graham is expected to miss at least another week while recovering from mono.