Penn State's performance on Saturday was a lot like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde -- polar opposites acting out at different times.

And which one shows up this week is anybody's guess.

"Early I thought we were very impatient," Penn State men's basketball coach Ed DeChellis said. "But I thought the last 10, 12 minutes we played the way we should play -- trying to push it a little bit more."

The Nittany Lions managed only 29 points during the first 28 minutes of the game -- but exploded for 37 points during the final 12. Penn State will look to continue that high-scoring trend when it takes on Nicholls State at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow and Long Island at 3:30 p.m. Saturday in the Bryce Jordan Center.

Still, even if Mr. Hyde should make an appearance, Penn State can afford some early mistakes. Nicholls State isn't exactly an NCAA powerhouse -- the Colonels went 0-14 while playing the role of visitor last season.

If that doesn't say enough about the Colonels' ability -- or lack thereof -- Nicholls State welcomes nine freshmen and returns only one starter from last year's sub-par performance.

Don't tell DeChellis tomorrow will be an easy win, though.

"They really drive and kick and try to spread the floor, try to play kinda unconventional," DeChellis said. "Our posts are gonna have to go to the perimeter some -- but it's another good test for us."

Freshman Jamelle Cornley said he wasn't
worried about defending the long ball, adding
that he welcomed the challenge. Cornley, a
6-foot-6 power forward, punctuated his rookie debut with 12 points and nine rebounds off the bench during Saturday's matchup against Cornell.

The Lions' other reserves should be crucial to the team's success again this week. Sophomore Mike Walker provided a spark from 3-point land and will be counted upon again vs. Nicholls State and Long Island. Odd as it may sound, starting the last game hardly guaranteed playing time, anyway.

Forward Brandon Hassell saw only 12 minutes of action, while Cornley's playing time equaled or surpassed three of the starters'.

All in all, it's a good possibility Penn State will improve to 3-0 on the season -- the last time the Lions achieved a similar feat was back in the 1999-2000 season when they earned an NIT berth.

"Sounds perfect. 3-0," guard Ben Luber said. "That's where we wanna be at."

Injury Report

Joonas Suotamo, a 6-foot-9 freshman, is still nursing his left foot and is expected to be out 2-3 more weeks. Suotamo is one of the Lions' few post players and will be missed after suffering a stress reaction in his third metatarsal.

Senior Travis Parker, who suffered from a sore back last week, is back at 100 percent and should be a force this week.