Lions top Hazleton, 71-67

By: Matylda Zamudio

HAZLETON, Pa. –– The Penn State Beaver men's basketball team rallied to a 71-67 road victory against Penn State Hazleton Friday night in the team's first of two back-to-back PSUAC road games this weekend.

Junior guard Keon Butler (Annapolis/Star Severn School) led the way for Beaver with a game-high 25 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals followed by senior guard John Foster (Austin/Del Valle), who finished with a double-double with 21 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block.

1st half: The teams played a tight contest in the opening minutes of the match, tying the game 6-6 at 15:34. But less than 30 seconds later, Butler delivered a pair of 3-pointers in under two minutes to give Beaver a 4-point lead. As the run continued, the Lions built their largest lead of 8 points at 12:55 thanks to a layup by Butler (16-8). But Hazleton hit right back with 8 unanswered points to tie the game at 16-16. The teams were still tied late in the half at 25-25, but Hazleton then drilled a 3-pointer and converted on three free-throws to go up by 6 (31-25). However, Foster answered the call for Beaver by putting up 7 points in the final three minutes of the first to put Beaver up by 1 at halftime (34-33).

2nd half: The Lions fostered a 6-point lead less than two minutes into the second half on a 3-point jumper by Butler, but the stint only lasted for a few minutes as Hazleton tied the game once again on two free-throws at 44-44. The teams battled hard the very end with the game tied at 67-67 with only 56 seconds left on the clock. Then with 34 seconds left, Butler scored a clutch layup to give the Lions back a 2-point lead (69-67). Hazleton then turned the ball over and fouled Foster, who dealt the final blow with two scored free-throws to help Beaver claim a 71-67 victory for the evening.

Inside the Box: Beaver shot 38.2 percent from the field, connecting on 26-68 shots, 40 percent from 3-point range on 12-30 shots and 87.5 percent from the free-throw line, hitting 7-8 from the charity stripe.

After tonight's match, the Lions improve to 9-8 overall and 6-5 in the PSUAC standings. The Lions will be for more PSUAC conference action tomorrow, Jan. 25, where they will take on Penn State Schuylkill. The game is slated for 2 p.m.