It took almost 35 minutes before the Penn State men's basketball team had a lead in the game.

The Nittany Lions trailed Nike Elite by 14 at the half, but battled back in the second half and grabbed its first lead at 65-64, when Brandon Watkins hit a three-pointer in transition.

The Lions continued to make big shot after big shot down the stretch including a pair of Jamaal Tate threes. Penn State held off Nike in its final exhibition game, 79-76, last night at the Bryce Jordan Center. The Lions open the regular season on Monday against North Carolina at the Pre-Season NIT.

"[The go ahead basket] was a momentum builder, and I missed two easy lay-ups in the first five or six minutes," Watkins said. "It was huge confidence boost for me and my team ...The transition baskets were a plus because those guys were getting tired."

In his return to the lineup, Watkins connected on 8-for-14 from the field, with 20 points and seven assists. Watkins uncharacteristically turned the ball over seven times. Penn State men's basketball coach Jerry Dunn attributed the turnovers to rust and the lack of game experience this season.

The Lions, whose backcourt scored 57 of the team's 79 points, struggled in the first half, shooting slightly under 40 percent. Meanwhile, Nike shot lights out in the opening twenty minutes as it hit on 56.3 percent of its field goal attempts.

Dunn said that in the first half his team failed to get over the top on screens and allowed easy baskets.

"We did not guard people very well early on," Dunn said. "We had some turnovers that were avoidable ... We didn't handle the on-ball screens exceptionally well in the first ten minutes."

The two teams flipped roles in the second 20 minutes, as the Lions shot 55.6 percent from the field including 6-for-7 from behind the arc. Nike shot a little better than Penn State did in the first half by shooting 43 percent, but Nike was playing much of the half with the services of only six players as Jay Locklier picked up his fourth foul early on.

Locklier led Nike in scoring with 14 points, all coming in the first half, on a perfect performance from the floor, 7-for-7.

Former Kansas State player Daryl Cunningham paced Nike with a strong overall outing. Cunningham, who is Watkins' cousin, scored eight points, grabbed six rebounds and had three assists.

Watkins said that it was special to play against his cousin as he grew up with him, went to the same high school and credited him teaching him the game of basketball.

Tate continued to shoot with confidence, but he brought other parts of his game with him. Tate finished with 17 points and added six rebounds. After shooting 67 percent against the EA Sports All-Stars, Tate shot 67 percent again against Nike.

Despite the comeback, Nike Elite coach Glenn Sergent still thinks that Penn State has plenty it needs to work on.

Choosing his words carefully, Sergent said, "I hope for the best because I know Jerry and I like Jerry, but I suspect that they won't win many games."