Yanic Konan Niederhauser tied a career-high 27 points to lead the way for Penn State (7-1,0-0) in its 23-point victory over the Buffalo Bulls (4-4, 0-0).
Freddie Dilione V set a new career-high with 16 points (4 3s) and dished out four assists, while Nick Kern Jr. totaled 12 points, four rebounds and three assists.
For Buffalo, Ryan Sabol (19 points, 5 3s) and Brayden Jackson (11 points) combined for 30 points.
Overall PSU shot 56 percent from the field, while Buffalo shot 42 percent. Penn State also forced 12 turnovers for 23 points of those turnovers.
Just like the game against Clemson, Ace Baldwin ย Jr. (10 assists) found Niederhauser on a lob for the first points of the game. But the next 10 minutes were not as fruitful as Penn State went 5-for-16
Even with those struggles, Penn State maintained the lead. Its swarming defense made it difficult for the Bulls to generate quality shots. D’Marco Dunn spearheaded this effort with his activity in the passing lanes, registering three steals.
After those early inefficiencies, both teams’ production perked up as over the final 10 minutes they combined for 18-for-30 shooting.
Niederhauser was the spark for Penn State as he tallied 10 points in the first, including six of the final 13 for PSU. A 3 by Baldwin and a highlight poster dunk by Niederhauser held steady the double-digit advantage for Penn State heading into halftime.
To start the second half, Sabol netted his second 3 of the game to make it a seven-point game.
Penn State started 0-for-5, but a Dilione 3-pointer ended that scoring drought. Then, Niederhauser stepped out for his first made 3 of the year, giving PSU a 13-point lead.
Both teams went on to struggle much like the first half, but a layup by Kern sparked a 12-2 run, ballooning the lead to 19 by the under-12 media timeout.
But Buffalo didn’t roll over, as a 12-5 run capitalized by Sabol’s third 3 of the half pulled the Bulls within 12.
Two free throws by Ben Michaels cut the Penn State lead to 10, but the Nittany Lions responded with a 12-1 run over the next four minutes to make it a 21-point game.
PSU ended the game on a 23-10 run, bringing the final score to 87-64.
Penn State will take on no. 12 Purdue on Thursday in the Bryce Jordan Center at 6:30 p.m.
