Score: Penn State 72, VCU 69
Location: University Park, Pa. (Bryce Jordan Center)
Records: VCU 2-2, Penn State 2-0
 
The short story: Senior forward Levi Stockard III provided a team-high 13 points, his most in a VCU uniform, but Penn State's Myles Dread hit a 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer to give the Nittany Lions a 72-69 win Wednesday night in Happy Valley.
 
OPENING TIP

• Stockard, a transfer from Kansas State, connected on 5-of-7 attempts from the field and helped fuel a late VCU comeback
• Sophomore guard Bones Hyland added 11 points and six rebounds to the Black and Gold cause
• Freshman point guard Ace Baldwin added seven points, six assists and two steals, with just one turnover, for VCU
• Seth Lundy led all players with 32 points for Penn State. He was 11-of-19 from the floor, including 5-of-10 from 3-point range

THE DIFFERENCE

• VCU freshman swingman Jamir Watkins nearly sent the game to overtime when he drove the left baseline for a game-tying reverse layup with 8.5 seconds remaining. Following a Penn State timeout, Jamari Wheeler swung the ball around to Dread, who connected on his only field goal of the game to give PSU the victory at the final horn
• The Rams trailed 68-60 with 3:46 left, but Hyland ignited a 9-1 VCU burst with a 3-pointer from the right wing in transition to tie the game at 69-all
• Penn State outrebounded VCU 37-34, including 12-8 on the offensive glass
• VCU crept within 55-53 with 8:02 left, but Lundy sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around a trey by teammate Sam Sessoms to push the Nittany Lions to a 64-56 advantage with 5:53 remaining

NOTABLE

• This was the first-ever meeting between VCU and Penn State
• VCU sophomore forward Hason Ward came off the bench to supply nine points and five rebounds
• The Rams freshman class of Watkins, Baldwin, Josh Banks and Mikeal Brown-Jones combined to give VCU 20 points and nine assists

NEXT UP
VCU will host Mount St. Mary's on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 2 p.m. in its home opener at the Stuart C. Siegel Center.