The Morehead State Eagles and the Penn State Nittany Lions meet Friday in college basketball action from Bryce Jordan Center. Morehead State is 2-2 so far this year. The Eagles beat Mercer in their most recent outing. As for Penn State, they’re 3-0 and coming off a win over St. Francis PA. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Morehead State Eagles
The Eagles had a blowout win over Shawnee State 96-40 sandwiched between two blowout losses to great teams in their first three games this year. First came a 105-73 loss to Alabama that featured a 40-29 rebounding deficit and 15 turnovers. In game three, Morehead State fell to Purdue 87-57 thanks to a sketchy 34.3 percent from the field and 22.6 (7-of-31) from 3-point range.
The Eagles were able to get back to the .500 mark on the season in their last appearance. Morehead State scored 38 points in the first half, then kept the pace from there in a 74-66 win. Leading the scoring was Drew Thelwell with 26 points. Riley Minix added 19 points with seven rebounds as well.
Penn State Nittany Lions
Over on the Penn State side, they haven’t had a ton of difficulties so far this year. The Lions beat Delaware State 79-45 in their opener by holding the Hornets to just 28.8 percent shooting from the field and 1-of-16 on 3-pointers. Game two was another win over Lehigh 74-65, despite seeing Penn State get out-rebounded 40-38.
Back on Tuesday versus St. Francis, the Nittany Lions jumped out to a 46-18 halftime edge and eventually powered out an 83-53 win. Kanye Clary led the team with 14 points, while Qudus Wahab added 12 points with six rebounds. Adrian Baldwin managed 11 points with four rebounds and four assists.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’m going to take a stab on Morehead State. I can see the Eagles hanging around in this one, as they haven’t played too badly so far—especially against comparable teams. Morehead State shot a smooth 52.4 percent in their latest win over Mercer, including 40 percent from 3-point range (8-of-20) and 88 percent from the line (22-of-25). The Eagles also pulled down 34 rebounds, but ball control was an issue with 26 turnovers. If Morehead State can get a handle on that aspect I think they’ll hit the boards well enough to follow along in this matchup. Penn State should win of course, but I don’t think the Eagles will be too far behind.
