Penn State Penn State/North Carolina State N.C. State Men's College Basketball recap on ESPN

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Anthony Grundy scored 29 points and North Carolina State shut off Penn State's outside game for an 84-76 victory in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge on Wednesday night.

The Wolfpack (3-2) avoided their worst start in five seasons under Herb Sendek by picking up their defense against a team that upset Kentucky four days ago by making 14 of 29 3-pointers.

Grundy made 11 of 12 free throws in the final two minutes as Penn State (2-1) cut a 22-point deficit to seven, but could get no closer.

N.C. State freshman Marcus Melvin had his second straight big game, scoring 16 points. Ron Kelley added 14 and Kenny Inge 13 and 16 rebounds as the ACC won the matchup between the two leagues, 5-4.

There wasn't much room for the Nittany Lions to maneuver on the perimeter. N.C. State's scrambling man-to-man defense limited Penn State to 4-for-23 from beyond the arc as Wolfpack fans yelled, "Kentucky was last week."

Brothers Joe and Jon Crispin combined for 13 3-pointers and 57 points against Kentucky, but didn't hit a long-range shot and scored just 15.

N.C. State led by seven at halftime, and jumped on Penn State early with a 13-6 run as Grundy and Archie Miller hit consecutive 3-pointers.

The lead grew to 20 with 10:35 left before Penn State put on its late rally.

Joe Crispin, who had 31 against Kentucky, finished with nine, going 4-for-23 from the field. Titus Ivory led Penn State with a career-high 25 points.

Melvin had a near-perfect first half in 10 minutes of work, scoring 10 points on 3-for-4 shooting and 4-for-4 from the foul line. Melvin scored six consecutive points in a span of 56 seconds as the Wolfpack grabbed its biggest lead of the first half at 34-24.

Crispin missed six straight spots at one point in a miserable start that saw the senior guard go 2-for-11.

Crispin was also stripped of the ball by Grundy as he was attempting to wind the clock down for the last shot of the half. The steal led to a dunk by Melvin and a 40-33 Wolfpack lead.

The Nittany Lions, one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the nation in the early going, were limited to 1-for-5 from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes as Grundy and Clifford Crawford did a good defensive job pressuring the Crispins on the outside.

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Mens College Basketball Scoreboard

Penn State Clubhouse

North Carolina State Clubhouse