Texas A&M
PENN STATE
Texas A&M 60, Penn State 55
Dec 03, 2005 | Men's Basketball
December 03, 2005
Joseph Jones scored 15 points and Josh Carter had 12 as Texas A&M improved to 4-0 on the season with a hard-fought 60-55 win over Penn State Saturday afternoon before a season-high 6,509 fans at Reed Arena.
Thirteen of Carter's 14 field goal attempts were 3-pointers. He made four, including one with 2:41 left that extended Texas A&M's lead to six after Penn State had trimmed a 15-point halftime deficit.
Acie Law added 10 points and eight assists for Texas A&M (4-0).
Geary Claxton scored 15 points and had 12 rebounds for Penn State (3-2), which shot 33 percent in the first half and was just 1-of-14 on 3-pointers. Twelve of Claxton's points came in the second half.
Jamelle Cornley had 12 points and Travis Parker added 10 for the Nittany Lions.
Freshman Martellus Bennett, a tight end for the Aggies during football season, blocked David Jackson's layup as time expired in his first basketball game at Texas A&M.
Postgame Quotes
PENN STATE HEAD COACH ED DECHELLIS: "Obviously we played very, very poorly in the first half. We're the kind of team that's got some grit and determination and heart, so we kept fighting and battling and started playing some basketball. We made some basketball plays in the second half. We didn't shoot the ball well from the perimeter tonight, so we tried to get it inside in the second half and try to get some baskets that way and generate some offense. But, I thought Texas A&M made free throws when they had to--(Acie) Law stepped up and made some and (Dominique Kirk) stepped up and made some."
(on A&M's defensive style) "They really do a good job of getting out there and pressuring. I thought in the first half they really did a good job of that and got into us and took us out of our stuff. The problem is we just can't simulate that kind of pressure in practice because we're not that athletic and long and so forth, so sometimes it takes us a little longer to get into the speed of the game. Does it need to take a half? I don't think so. We knew that coming in though. They played like that last year and we've watched tape (from this season). We tried to prepare for it, but we just didn't do a very good job the first half. In the second half, the pressure didn't really bother us, and we got into the speed and flow of the game and we made some good plays. But they are a good team and athletic."
A&M HEAD COACH BILLY GILLISPIE: "That was a good win for us. It was kind of close there but that's what we needed. I think that really helped us. They have a very good team. They're well coached and they didn't give up. I'm really happy that we are 4-0. If the win would have been by a larger margin, our record would still be 4-0. We had a little chance to experience some stress and we probably needed that. I thought our guys for the most part did a pretty good job of that. We didn't play great in the second half, but we were able to win. It was really looking like last year's game but flipped. Luckily we were able to hang on and win.
"I thought our defense in the first half was about as good as anybody could possibly play right now on December 3. I'm not saying we're the best team or anything like that, but our position defense was fantastic for a half. I thought that in the second half, when our shots started not going, that determined how we played on defense. You can't do that. That's a step of maturation that you have to take, and I thought we let it affect how we played defensively."
A&M JUNIOR ACIE LAW: "I give them a lot of credit. They didn't quit when they got down, they continued to play hard. They came out and continue to fight. They are a Big Ten team, that's something you'd expect them to do from they conference they are in, night in and night out."
(on why Penn State got back in the game) "I think we weren't as sharp on offense. We shot the ball okay, but all in all I think we had a pretty bad night offensively. But they continued to battle and brought it at us and continued to get it inside. They continued to fight."
A&M SOPHOMORE JOSEPH JONES: "We were letting them get the ball closer to the post and weren't getting much pressure. As big men we weren't playing good post defense, so they were converting on easy buckets."
(on whether or not the zone was frustrating) "In a way (it was), but we see zones everyday. We weren't being very aggressive with the ball, and me as well posting up on the inside. It was a little frustrating but we knew we could do better than that."
