PHILADELPHIA (Interstat) — The Penn State Nittany Lions used a dominant first half and a balanced offensive attack to remain undefeated, defeating the La Salle Explorers 83-69 in a non-conference men’s basketball game Saturday at The Palestra.

Penn State improved to 4-0, while La Salle evened its record at 2-2.

The Nittany Lions seized control of the game from the opening tip, building a commanding 42-29 lead by halftime. Their efficient offense, which shot 57.9 percent from the floor for the game, proved too much for the Explorers to overcome despite a more competitive second half.

Melih Tunca led all scorers with 20 points for Penn State. The guard from Istanbul, Turkey, added four assists in 32 minutes of action, consistently finding seams in the La Salle defense. He was one of four Nittany Lions to score in double figures, highlighting the team’s shared offensive burden.

Freddie Dilione V contributed 16 points, while Kayden Mingo and Ivan Juric added 14 and 11 points, respectively. Mingo, a guard from Farmingdale, New York, filled the stat sheet with a game-high seven assists and four rebounds. Juric, a 7-foot center from Zagreb, Croatia, controlled the paint with six rebounds and a blocked shot.

La Salle was led by Ashton Walker’s 13 points and six assists. Jerome Brewer recorded a double-double with 13 points and seven rebounds, and Jaeden Marshall chipped in 11 points for the Explorers.

The game’s outcome was heavily influenced by Penn State’s superior execution in several key areas. The Nittany Lions capitalized on La Salle’s 15 turnovers, converting them into 16 points, while the Explorers managed just nine points off Penn State’s seven giveaways. Penn State also dominated in the paint, outscoring La Salle 44-30, and in transition, racking up 14 fast-break points to La Salle’s three.

Penn State’s offensive rating of 129.2 on 64 possessions dwarfed La Salle’s mark of 107.6 on an equal number of trips, underscoring the Nittany Lions’ scoring efficiency. They shot an impressive 50 percent from 3-point range, connecting on 10 of 20 attempts.

La Salle struggled to find an offensive rhythm early, falling behind by double digits and never managing to cut the deficit to single digits in the second half. While they improved their scoring after halftime, putting up 40 points, they could not consistently string together stops to mount a serious comeback against a disciplined Penn State squad.

The Nittany Lions entered the game as heavy favorites according to predictive metrics and covered the pregame spread. The combined score of 152 points fell under the projected total.

Penn State will look to continue its winning streak when it hosts Harvard on Wednesday. La Salle returns to action the same day, facing Villanova at home.