There was an explosion in Rec Hall Saturday afternoon. All that remained was the faint odor of burning hawk feathers.

Every Lion starter scored in double figures and every man on the roster played as the men's basketball team blew St. Joseph's off the court, 92-72.

The Lions (13-5, 7-3 in the Atlantic 10) simply lined up and shot the ball. They kept the Hawks (4-14, 2-8) moving the whole game.

Although the Lions dominated, they dominated quietly. Even after the game, Coach Bruce Parkhill and the players insisted they felt the Hawks could come back at any time.

"It really doesn't feel like a 20-point win to me," Parkhill said. "I thought they were always within striking distance because of the way they can shoot the ball for three and the way they can shoot foul shots. So I'm real happy with the way the guys played. We played pretty well at both ends of the floor."

St. Joe's made several comeback attempts, but Penn State kept the team perpetually at arm's length. The Lions maintained an average lead of 10 points during the first half and 20 during the second.

"The kind of team that we have has a tendency to hustle its way back," St. Joe's coach Jim Boyle said. "But sometimes we're lacking in some of the basics. It's not by attitude that this team is deficient. These guys definitely try their best."

Penn State controlled the opening tip and everything that followed. In the first four minutes center Ed Fogell pumped in eight of the Lions' first 12 points en route to his team-high 23.

The Lions were up 12-6 when Freddie Barnes and Michael Jennings went into a 3-point shot skirmish with St. Joe's Mike Shaak. After a minute and a half of long-distance bombs, Penn State remained on top, 21-12.

With about seven minutes remaining in the half, the Hawks tried a new tactic. Down nine points, they held the ball at mid-court and chewed time off the shot clock.

"We wanted to see if they would guard us on the open court," Boyle said. "But they decided not to. That wasn't really a delay game. That was just asking if they wanted to guard us. They declined, and thereby won the game handily."

The Hawks tried the offense for two or three trips down the floor and couldn't convert. Then they went to the time-honored tradition of fouling. The Lions scored 10 of their last 16 points in the half from the free throw stripe and went into the locker room with a 44-24 lead.

The situation got no better for the Hawks after halftime. They came out and played aggressive basketball, making the Lions send them to the foul line many times, but could not pull any closer than 12 points in the middle of the second half.

Although the Hawks squeezed more than a few foul shots from the Lion defense, everyone knew the show was over by the last few minutes. Parkhill used the opportunity to clear his bench and give his younger players some minutes.

On the whole, the Lions upped their performance a notch. They shot 56 percent from the floor and 50 percent from 3-point range. Their averages for the season are 46 and 27 percent, respectively. The Lions were 86 percent from the foul line as opposed to their normal 70 percent. They out-rebounded the Hawks 34-28, sticking close to their average span of 36-30.

After the game Boyle admired the Penn State program. He said that the way the Lions played reminded him of an NCAA Tournament team.

"I hope so," Fogell said. "The way we played at times tonight, it's obvious that we can play basketball. So it's a matter of doing it consistently for 40 minutes each game."

Fogell's theory will be tested immediately. Saturday began a two-week run where the Lions will play six important games. First up is Lehigh, which the Lions will play at 7:30 tonight at Lehigh.

"Lehigh is a tough team," Fogell said. "They've got some hard workers and good shooters . . . It's not a layup and we're going to have to work for everything. But we're going to have a lot of confidence and be ready to play."