AFTER TURNOVERS, A TURNAROUND

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – With an offensively disjointed and turnover-happy start last night, the Terrapin men's basketball team seemed at times to be trying its best to give Penn State everything it might need for an upset.

But again and again, the Nittany Lions just wouldn't take it.

Lifted by an aggressive defense that more than made up for shortcomings in other areas, the Terps bounced back to control the second half in a 62-39 win in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, their first victory of the season away from Comcast Center.

"We wanted to tire them out," said guard Sean Mosley, who finished with 10 points. "We definitely put the pressure on them and kept the pressure on them the whole game."

More than five minutes into the first half, the Terps had managed just one shot and two missed free throws.

Turnovers hampered the Terps early. In the first four minutes of the game, they were whistled for three traveling calls, each cutting short possessions before the team could even get a look at the rim inside Bryce Jordan Center.

In one instance, Cliff Tucker ended a possession before it ever started, ripping a rebound away from Penn State and absentmindedly walking with the ball as he looked to go on the attack.

"We came off not attacking the basket," Mosley said.

While the Terps struggled to find any shots, the Nittany Lions had a different sort of problem. They were getting looks at the basket, but they just couldn't sink them. Even with the help of six Terp turnovers, Penn State led just 7-0 almost five minutes into a game many expected to be a wide-open, frantic affair.

Against the Terps (6-2), the Nittany Lions often opted to shoot when they could — as opposed to when they should — producing typically ugly shots and long looks at the basket. And when they did get off a clean shot, the rim still proved their enemy, sending the ball clanging away.

Penn State (5-2) shot 9-for-40 from the field in the first half, or 22.5 percent, and the Nittany Lions made just one of 14 from behind the arc.

While the Terps managed just 16 first-half attempts, they made half of them.

"I'd like to think it was our defense," coach Gary Williams said. "But a lot of times, guys miss shots. And I'm sure they felt that they had some shots that just missed."

As the Terps settled into a groove, the Nittany Lions' lead proved too narrow to keep their visitors at bay for long. In one stretch, facing dogged man-to-man defense , Penn State forward Jeff Brooks committed an offensive foul seemingly out of frustration. Forward Jordan Williams (15 points, 11 rebounds) scored on the Terps' ensuing possession to pull them within two midway through the first half.

That was followed by two Williams rebounds and a Tucker block that sent both the ball and Penn State guard Taran Buie flying out of bounds. Within little more than a minute, the Terps had taken their first lead of the night, 11-9.

After needing nine minutes to step in front, the Terps made sure to make better use of the remaining time on their hands. They widened their lead to six by halftime.

In the second half, the Terps gradually built their lead. Though the slow pace was unfamiliar for the usually fast-paced and frenetic squad, they outscored Penn State 36-19 after intermission.

"We did a better job offensively not just in transition but in the half court of finding people inside," Gary Williams said.

Penn State star guard Talor Battle did his best to keep his team in the game, taking the ball under pressure and scoring more than half of his team's points. But the Terps kept the rest of the Nittany Lions in check — after Battle's game-high 21 points, no other Penn State player scored more than six.

"It's [about] playing defense," Mosley said. "That's what we emphasize a lot."

kyanchulis@umdbk.com