An uncontested 15-foot shot facing the basket straight-on -- that's all a foul shot is.

But for the men's basketball team Friday night, it was much more, as the Lions buried 10-of-12 from the charity stripe in the final two minutes to subdue the Miami Hurricanes, 69-57, at the Miami Arena.

"I'm really happy for the kids. With all the talk about winning on the road, it has to be in the back of their minds," Coach Bruce Parkhill said. "We kept our compusure and executed very well and again, it's more impressive given the circumstances. . . . We haven't been upbeat the past week. In my mind's eye, it was a trip to the dentist without Novocaine."

Penn State (12-5, 5-3 Atlantic 10) earned 12 of its last 16 points at the free-throw line. Last week, poor foul shooting cost the Lions a win at Duquesne. Penn State is ranked first in the A-10 in free-throw shooting, carrying a 73.8 percent mark.

"We wanted to finish it off at the line," said guard Freddie Barnes, who hit 4-of-6 down the stretch. "It cost us last time, and this time, we wanted to get the job done."

The Lions rolled over Miami earlier this season at Rec Hall, coasting to a 93-67 triumph. This time, it was a different location and a different story.

The play was sloppy in the early going as the teams started with sluggish shooting. Miami (3-15) used a 2-3 zone to deny the Lions' inside game early and held a 12-10 with 11:04 remaining in the first half.

Early foul trouble forced Parkhill to go to the bench. Following a timeout, Parkhill put Michael Jennings into the game. The sophomore guard nailed a quick 3-point attempt to regain the Lions' lead.

He followed with a jumper from the left baseline and finished his four-minute stint with a second trey to put the Lions up, 25-20. The sophomore ended with 11 points. Penn State claimed a slim 26-25 halftime advantage.

"That's has been our problem on the road all year -- we don't come out real strong," DeRon Hayes said. "At halftime, we pinpointed what we needed to do and came out aggressive and kept it up for the rest of the game."

In the second half, Freddie Barnes and Monroe Brown broke the 'Canes zone. The guard duo worked the ball inside to James Barnes, who hit seven of his nine points in the second half.

The pair also turned offensive after tentative play in the first half, finishing the game as the Lions' high scorers with 12 apiece. Their penetration opened opportunities outside for forward DeRon Hayes, who finished with 10.

"We talked about getting more movement in their zone," Freddie Barnes said. "Once we got their big men moving and drove inside, the rest worked itself out."

The Lions' defense also received a wake-up call at halftime and turned its play up a notch in the second half. Penn State's surge held the 'Canes to a season-low 32 percent shooting from the floor.

Leading 32-30, Miami had a 3-on-1 break with only Brown defending. Brown anticipated the pass and broke between a pair of Hurricane players to pick off the pass. He darted up court and hit a breakaway layup of his own to knot the score.

After that, the Lions roared to a 45-38 advanatge. C.J. Johnson, James Barnes and Carter asserted themselves. The trio each hit on strong moves inside during that stretch to wear the Hurricanes down.

The Lions will need to continue their aggressive play tonight in an A-10 battle with Rutgers at 7:30. The Scarlet Knights (11-6, 6-3) are third in the conference, a half-game up on the Lions.

Parkhill will be looking for career win No. 200 against Rutgers. The eight-year Lion coach is 110-110 at Penn State, holding a 199-185 mark overall.