Penn State men’s basketball is off to a hot scoring start to the 2024-25 season, but head coach Mike Rhoades pointed to the team’s defense Friday night against Virginia Tech. The Nittany Lions made 16 steals, forced 24 turnovers and held the Hokies to 5-for-18 from 3-point range in an 86-64 victory in the Hall of Fame Series in Baltimore.

Penn State senior guard Ace Baldwin Jr. returned to his hometown, where he finished with 19 points, 10 assists and three steals in leading the Nittany Lions to their fourth straight victory. Penn State has won its opening four games by a combined margin of 35.8 points.

“There’s no guarantees in sports, but I like where we’re going, I like how much these guys are working, I like how much they care about each other,” Penn State coach Mike Rhoades told reporters in Baltimore after the game.

Penn State jumped on Virginia Tech quickly, taking a 15-2 lead after making six of its first eight shots. The Hokies scored the next six points before Nick Kern Jr. made back-to-back layups on fast breaks to give the Nittany Lions an 11-point lead.

Penn State built a 14-point lead before Virginia Tech went on a 9-0 run, but the Hokies didn’t score in the final 3:40 of the first half. The Nittany Lions built on their eight-point halftime lead, as Puff Johnson outscored Virginia Tech 7-0 during one stretch. Johnson turned two steals into four points off turnovers, and Penn State took control of the game from there.

Zach Hicks made five 3-pointers to score 19 points, and Kern added 16 by shooting 6-for-7 from the field. Freddie Dilione V added a career-high 11 points, five rebounds and four steals.

Baldwin, who is averaging 14.3 points and seven assists through four games, said he was “overexcited” for the game, which led to a technical foul. But he also said the game was “very fun, a great atmosphere and very exciting.” Baldwin recorded his first double-double of the season.

Rhoades identified Baldwin as the team’s player of the game but reserved praise for forward Kachi Nzeh, whom he called a “difference-maker.” Rhoades said that Nzeh, who scored eight points and made one steal, had lost 22 pounds recently after contracting strep throat.

“The way he played the game today was a huge, huge step for him,” Rhoades said.

Noteworthy for the Nittany Lions

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Penn State returns to the Bryce Jordan Center to face Purdue-Fort Wayne on Nov. 20. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on BIG+.

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