Associated Press, January 1, 2017

(AP) Payton Banks had 20 points and Tony Carr had 15 points to lead Penn State past Rutgers 60-47 on Sunday in a New Year's Day matinee.

Penn State (9-6, 1-1) struggled out for the gate. The Nittany Lions went 0 of 10 from the field before Carr made a 3-pointer with 12:51 left in the first half. From that 7-5 deficit, the Lions reached halftime with a 27-23 lead.

From there, Penn State would slowly extend the lead. Lamar Stevens dunked on a fast break after stealing the ball from Issa Thiam to give Penn State the 44-29 lead with 12:54 to play. The slam briefly sucked the energy from the 6,079 Rutgers fans.

Penn State would lead by as many as 18 leading 47-29 11:57 to play. While Penn State would go on a seven minute stretch without a field goal midway through the half, the closest Rutgers was able to get was 49-38 with 5:26 to play.

Mike Williams had 16 points for Rutgers (11-3, 0-1).

BIG PICTURE

Penn State: While they are 0-3 on neutral courts, the Nittany Lions are now 3-0 for "true" road games.

Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights are in search of their first Big Ten win under new coach Steve Pikiell. They had one win last season in Big Ten play against Minnesota and won just two games in their inaugural Big Ten season against Penn State and eventual national runner up Wisconsin.

UP NEXT

Penn State is at Michigan on Wednesday night.

Rutgers is at Michigan State on Wednesday night.