Imagine a basketball world without dribbling. It'd be Allen Iverson's worst nightmare. Thanks to a practice exercise it sometimes runs, the Penn State men's basketball team doesn't have to.

The "toughness drill" pits two teams against each other, and the ball can only move through passes until time runs out. Whoever has the most passes wins.

"It's tough because you can't dribble, you can't get away," senior forward Travis Parker said. "You just gotta take all the pressure."

It mimics the pressure of a close game's final minutes and, ideally, builds the toughness a team -- perhaps especially the Nittany Lions -- needs to win in late-game situations.Saturday at Purdue, the Lions held a 14-point lead with 1:48 left only to have turnovers and missed free throws allow the Boilermakers to make it a closer game. They won (69-60), much like they did on Feb. 15 vs. Indiana (71-68). Penn State scored a single point in the final 3:46 vs. the Hoosiers, and made one of six free throws. Garry Kasparov endgames, they were not.

"A growing, maturing, developing situation with our team is how we play down the stretch," assistant coach Kurt Kanaskie said.

The Lions have played in numerous close games this season, earning mixed results: wins at Illinois, vs. Indiana and at Purdue -- losses vs. Iowa, at Michigan State and vs. Michigan.

The Lions held or were close to the lead with about three minutes left in each. Penn State assistant coach Kurt Kanaskie said closing out a game depends on eliminated mistakes and improved decision-making.

"Throughout the adversity, we were still able to win the games," Kanaskie said. "We played well enough to win."

That's from a broad perspective. But on a game-by-game basis, winning the close one had been the team's albatross. Until the Indiana game, it suffered some painful losses.

Iowa: The Lions held a one-point lead with 1:03 to go. But then Hawkeye Adam Haluska missed a 3-point shot, and teammate Greg Brunner grabbed the offensive rebound. Sophomore guard Mike Walker fouled Brunner, who made both free throws and turned the tide for good.

Michigan State: Against the then-No. 11 team in the country, the Lions might have been outranked. But down just one with 3:08 left, very much in the game. But they scored no points in that time while the Spartans hit key shots. A Drew Neitzel three with 35 seconds to go put it out of reach, 69-60.

Michigan: The Wolverines needed no punctuating shot as Penn State, trailing 64-61, went 2-for-8 from field goal range and missed both of its free throws. Michigan, on the other hand, made all of its shots.

The Lions found themselves in another tight game vs. Indiana, who they will play again tomorrow. But unlike the Iowa, Michigan State and Michigan games, Penn State held on to its 70-65 advantage with 3:46 left for a 71-68 victory. What changed?

"We were able to stop their initial shot and not give them second shots down the stretch," Penn State assistant coach Kurt Kanaskie said. "We made a much more concerted effort to block out and get rebounds."

Freshman forward Jamelle Cornley said the team overcame its arid shooting, "sucked it up and ran back down court and made sure they didn't score either." Defensive effort and staunch rebounding helped the Lions survive.

What of mistake-free basketball? Handling the ball well and making free throws? Good decisions that dictate good finishes?

"We didn't finish the Indiana game very well," DeChellis said. "No sense in playing 38 great minutes and then blow it all in the last two."

He said the same thing about how his team finished Saturday's win at Purdue. Kanaskie said you can attribute that to youth (Penn State is the youngest squad in the Big Ten) or lack of career experience in late-game situations. But he also said there's another key to closing out games.

"The more important thing is that we learn and grow and eliminate the mistakes and mental errors down the stretch of the game," Kanaskie said. "We have to eliminate those type things."

In doing so, more Lions' practices will fall to a dribble-less silence, another toughness drill afoot.