The Rec Hall faithful definitely have to be happy about their team's 81-59 performance against a talented Brown team last night at Rec Hall.

They not only witnessed how an intense defense can turn a close contest into a blowout --they saw their "defensive whiz" score his 1,000th career point as a Lion in an ironic twist of fate.

Because it was the defense, the area Monnie Brown has been recognized for during his Penn State career, that commandeered the offensive attack at the end of the first half and into the second; it's hard to believe the Bears only trailed 29-24 with 3:06 remaining in the first.

What happened?

"We turned the ball over too much," Brown Coach Frank Dobbs said. "We had too many unforced turnovers -- very uncharacteristic of us."

And it was the turnovers that ultimately doomed the Bears.

Two huge steals by Freddie Barnes, one of which turned into a lay-up and the other which resulted in a three-point play, jump-started an 11-2 run into the intermission.

Defense was the word of the evening at Rec Hall last night, and so was steal. Penn State ended the game with 10 swipes --a number which pleased Coach Bruce Parkhill.

"Defense was the primary factor in why the game went the way it did," he pointed out.

And it would only get worse for the Bears, a team that earlier in the season beat cross-town rival Providence 71-69 and fought Arizona State to the wire on the road in Tempe.

The Lion defense seized firm control of the game in the second half and forced the normally steady Brown team into committing turnover after turnover, which "turned-over" into easy transition baskets for Penn State, and ultimately led to the 22-point romp. Brown finished the game with 21 miscues.

It was defense that loosened up the Lion offense and smothered the Bears'.

But not only did Brown notch his 1,000th point (he now has 1,011 with his 17-point effort), he equally lived up to the fitting label as the team's defensive whiz.

The Lions not only forced turnovers, they blanketed the potent Bear backcourt of Chuck Savage and Rick Lloyd.

"We didn't leave them for a second," Brown said. "We were just on them."

That is a grave understatement. Along with backcourt mate Barnes, the tandem completely shut down the Bears' Savage and Lloyd, both potent 3-point threats. Savage, averaging 14.1 points per game entering the game, shot a paltry one-for-six, and Lloyd, a .462 3-point shooter, canned only one trey.

"You have to give Penn State a lot of credit," Dobbs said. "They took away our threats."

And credit they deserve. The Lion defense created fast break points and several easy shots, which Penn State capitalized on -- shooting 61.3 percent in the second half.

Brown definitely cashed in. The 6-foot-3 guard was on the "Monnie," banking 8-for-14 (5-for-6 in the second half). Matt Gaudio looked like he duked it out in a prize fight down in the paint. The bruising freshman hit six of his eight shots, played with blood running down his face, and, along with Eric Carr, shined in the power forward spot.