Lamar Stevens stands tall as Penn State beats Alabama, 73-71
Stomping up the court, throwing his arms in all directions — practically breathing fire — Lamar Stevens released whatever had been building inside him throughout an uncharacteristically tough afternoon. He’d just forced an Alabama turnover after giving Penn State the lead with a 3-point play, and roared with emotion.
Finally, Stevens was awake, and not about to let his Nittany Lions lose. And he didn’t. Penn State rode its best player down the stretch to squeak out a 73-71 win over the Crimson Tide and move to 9-2 on the season.
“Lamar knew it was his time,” Penn State coach Pat Chambers said.
“He became a dominant player in the last four minutes.”
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Stevens scored seven of his 18 points in the game’s final 5:40, but his impact late was felt most strongly on the defensive end of the floor.
In the final 12 minutes of the game, Stevens blocked four Alabama shots. Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats said his team had been trying to draw Mike Watkins out to the perimeter and force Stevens to become Penn State’s rim protector. That, it’s safe to say, didn’t work out.
“He’s an issue,” Oats said simply.
Isolated in the right corner against Alabama’s Alex Reese with Penn State leading by two and less than 10 seconds remaining on the clock, Stevens turned an issue into a loss for the Crimson Tide.
Stevens figured Reese would fire from three-point range, so Stevens positioned himself right in Reese’s face, leaving him no space to get a shot away. Reese tried to drive against Stevens, and that didn’t work either.
All Reese could muster was a flailing desperation heave that bounced off the backboard as he fell out of bounds along the baseline. Suffocated by Stevens’ defense, Alabama’s last chance never even created a scare.
“I wanted to make him drive, and then I don’t know what he did, but he did that,” Stevens said, also somewhat confused by Alabama’s chaotic last attempt.
Stevens’ heroics canceled out what at times was a startling performance by the Nittany Lions in the first half.
Penn State was obviously bothered by Alabama’s length and speed, and Chambers went so far as to say he thought his team looked sluggish at times, citing a tough six-game stretch against power conference teams. The Crimson Tide, by comparison, were fresh, with more than a week off to prepare for Penn State.
“They were flying around,” Chambers said.
That translated to a nine-point Alabama lead with three minutes to go in the first half. The Nittany Lions couldn’t score, and Chambers desperately needed to find some kind of offensive source.
So he turned to transfer Curtis Jones, who was on the bench with two early fouls. Jones rewarded him with eight points in the last three minutes of the half, keeping the deficit manageable for the Nittany Lions at six points.
“I had a hunch Curtis was going to have fresh legs,” Chambers said.
He did, and Penn State needed them.
The game’s second half still called for a hero, as the Nittany Lions pulled themselves closer on more than one occasion only to be beaten back by the Crimson Tide.
Staying engaged after he started 2-for-11 from the field, Stevens gave the Nittany Lions what they needed — on both ends of the floor.
“Lamar played like a big time player defensively,” Chambers said.
“The fact that your best player wants to play defense at all is fantastic.”
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