Penn State men’s basketball team continued its dominant start to the 2024-25 basketball season, clinching its first 6-0 season in 25 years with an 85-66 win against the Fordham Rams Monday afternoon. The Nittany Lions move on to the Sunshine Slam championship game and will face the winner of this evening’s tilt between Clemson and San Francisco.
Penn State’s offense was once again impressive, shooting 52.6 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from the 3-point line. Another significant statistical advantage the Nittany Lions held was a 21-8 edge in second-chance points.
[autotag]Nick Kern Jr.[/autotag] came off the bench and led Penn State with 20 points on 9-12 shooting while grabbing 13 rebounds. [autotag]Zach Hicks[/autotag] also continued his strong start to the year scoring 16 points and knocking down three 3-pointers.
The Rams didn’t go down without a fight. They scored six of the final seven points of the half, cutting Penn State’s lead to 42-34. The Nittany Lions used a 16-1 scoring run in the second half to extend their lead to 72-50 with under ten minutes left.
Fordham could not get any closer as Penn State earned the wire-to-wire victory to advance to the Sunshine Slam finale Tuesday afternoon.
Penn State will face San Francisco or Clemson at 4 p.m. Tuesday on CBS Sports Network.