"Morgan" and "State" are not two words that together strike fear into the heart of opposing basketball teams. For those who follow the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference -- a league of historically black institutions renowned for competitive bands -- the Bears' ballers would be synonymous with a weak drumline.

With a 0-5 record -- following a 4-24 record last season -- Morgan State has lost by an average of almost 15 points per game to the likes of East Carolina, American and Maryland-Baltimore County.

Yet utter three syllables to the Penn State men's basketball team, "Stony Brook" or "Shippensburg", for instance, and the Nittany Lions (4-2) know they can't categorize the Bears as a walkover at 4 p.m. tomorrow in the Bryce Jordan Center.

"We just relax too much," sophomore forward Jamelle Cornley said. "I think we just kind of look past some things. 'This is Shippensburg, this is Stony Brook. Let's hurry up and get this game over with and let's get to the next game,' instead of really going out and taking their hearts early."

Penn State is coming off a three-game stretch against more respected teams, with last-second wins over Bucknell and Saint Joseph's and a four-point loss to then-No. 24 Georgia Tech on the road.

Cornley scored 20 points against the Yellow Jackets, while junior forward Geary Claxton, with a bulging wrap on his right hand, scored his season-high, with 12 points. That's over now.

"We just have to go out strong and [be] very, very aggressive," Cornley said. "We can't really worry about the Georgia Tech game, it's over and done with. You can't worry about the Bucknell, St. Joe's game, all those games are in the past and don't mean anything right now."

Those strong showings, though, cannot erase the memory of a 59-51 loss to Stony Brook of the America East Conference. In that game, Penn State shot 31 percent in the second half.

Penn State coach Ed DeChellis referenced the fact that his team experiences offensive lulls and noted that Morgan State has similar hot and cold streaks. But the Bears are winless, though they did outscore Seton Hall in the second half in a 17-point loss.

Morgan State coach Todd Bozeman was brought in this season to change a culture of losing. Bozeman was the head man at California before he was banned from the collegiate coaching ranks for eight years in 1996 for paying more than $30,000 during a two-year period to former player Jelani Gardner.

The talent isn't quite there yet. While Penn State will have the tallest player on the court, 6-foot-11 senior Brandon Hassell, the Bears can really only boast the smallest on the court. Senior guard Demetrius Branch is nicknamed "Smurf" for his 5-foot-6, 145-pound frame. As a team, Morgan State shoots 42.6 percent from the field.

If the Lions take Morgan State serious, though, jokes about Branch and his teammates won't be a point of emphasis in practice. Scoring more and keeping points off the board are the real concerns -- because losing to the Bears is not impossible.

"Our margin of error has not been that high," DeChellis said. "We've been a low 60s team, and if somebody scores that many points, they have a chance right now."