Ed DeChellis said it was a tale of two halves for Penn State -- it was the best of first halves, and it was the worst of second halves.

The Nittany Lions erupted for 36 points by halftime but finished with a pitiful second-half total of 26, their lowest all season. The sour ending culminated in Penn State falling to Wisconsin, 82-62, Saturday afternoon at the Bryce Jordan Center.

"The second half we didn't play defense, and Wisconsin took advantage of it," forward Geary Claxton said. "They outscored and outrebounded us."

Outrebounded may have been an understatement. Penn State (11-11, 3-8 Big Ten) was virtually non-existent on the glass, as the Badgers nearly doubled the Lions' 24 boards. Penn State was able to atone for the rebounding discrepancy in the first half by shooting more than 50 percent.

But, after amassing a 36-34 halftime lead, trouble started snowballing for Penn State.

"[Wisconsin] didn't miss many shots in the second half," DeChellis said. "They only missed 12 or 14 shots, and they got half those back -- so, defensively, we just didn't do anything in the second half."

The Lions trudged out of the locker room and put forth a sub-par offensive effort as well, allowing the Badgers (17-7, 7-4) to take control with a 16-4 run. The problem with Penn State, DeChellis said, was that his team's lackluster shooting took away momentum that his defense couldn't regain.

"I think we always look for an offensive spark, and it has to be a defensive spark," he said.

Offensive sparks were a dime a dozen the first half, as freshman forward Jamelle Cornley led the charge with 14 points, and Penn State shot 15-of-28 as a team.

Unfortunately for Penn State, there wasn't much of a carry-over. The Lions shot 29.6 percent in the second half, and Cornley didn't make a single basket for the rest of the game.

"I thought I was going to have a career night," Cornley said. "But, unfortunately, I came out of the second half and missed my last four shots."

While the second half was all Wisconsin, the first was an exciting back-and-forth affair that saw Penn State rally from a seven-point deficit in front of 8,587 fans, the second-biggest crowd all season.

Trailing 27-20, the Lions held the opposition scoreless for over six minutes en route to a 12-0 run. Claxton handed his team a big swing of momentum and the lead after an acrobatic alley-oop dunk on a pass from Ben Luber.

Despite the huge difference in both halves, Wisconsin's Bo Ryan said he didn't change a thing from a coaching standpoint.

"The guys always set me up to say it's a coaching move, and my wife tells me at times that I should say that -- but I can't," Ryan said. "We did not change our philosophy."

Wisconsin guard Kammron Taylor, went 6-of-7 from behind the arc and recorded a game-high 24 points.

Wisconsin's top threat, Alando Tucker, was held to nine points since he was in foul trouble most of the afternoon. Penn State also limited its turnovers -- it only had three, the fewest in at least the last nine years.

Still, it wasn't enough, and Penn State's hope for a NIT berth grows dimmer with each loss.