GAME NOTES: The Penn State Nittany Lions try to bring an end to a four-game losing streak as they entertain the Purdue Boilermakers in Big Ten Conference action at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Penn State opened the 2014-15 campaign with much promise, winning 12 of the first 13 games on the schedule, but after defeating Dartmouth a few days before Christmas, the team went into a tailspin. More specifically, the conference schedule kicked in and the Nittany Lions were exposed, losing all four league bouts.

The latest setback for PSU took place on Tuesday night when the team bowed to Indiana on the road, 76-73.

Over on the other side, the Boilermakers have had their own struggles as they are now 2-2 in conference play even though they won their first two Big Ten bouts of the season. A week ago, the program was pitted against 11th-ranked Maryland at home and came up small in a 69-60 final.

Purdue leads the all-time series by a 30-12 mark, although the Nittany Lions won the most recent meeting last season by a score of 79-68 at home, snapping a four-game slide in the series.

Facing off against a nationally-ranked program for the second straight game, the Boilermakers again played tough by failed to register the upset, this time against the Terrapins. Kendall Stephens scored 14 points and pulled down seven rebounds for Purdue, followed by Rapheal Davis and Jon Octeus with 12 and 10 points, respectively. The team shot only 5-of-20 behind the 3-point line and 36.8 percent from the floor overall.

As was the case against Maryland, the Boilermakers typically attack opponents with balanced scoring. The squad is generating 72.9 ppg but doesn't have a single player even scoring 11 ppg at this juncture. Stephens is the high man with 10.9 ppg, followed closely by Isaac Haas and A.J. Hammons with 10.1 ppg each, Hammons is first on the unit with 5.9 rpg, helping to push Purdue to a 6.9 rpg advantage over the competition, adding a team-best 42 blocked shots as well.

Penn State trailed by as many as 12 points in the second half, with under eight minutes to play, but made a valiant effort to turn the tide before being handed the three-point road loss. A total of six players scored in double figures for the Nittany Lions, including all five starters as Shep Garner and Ross Travis both tallied 14 points, the latter hitting 7-of-8 from the floor and clearing eight rebounds.

D.J. Newbill converted only 5-of-15 from the floor as he finished with 12 points, to go along with six assists and five boards, while Brandon Taylor tacked on 11 points and both Donovon Jack and Geno Thorpe responded with 10 points in the losing cause.

Newbill, who has at least shared the scoring lead for the Lions in all but two games this season, tends to be the only reliable offensive source for the program, although the meeting with Indiana proved otherwise. A 46.2 percent shooter from the floor Newbill, who has accounted for more than 25 percent of the team's total field goal attempts, checks in with 20.8 ppg and is also responsible for 53 assists as he tries to get his teammates involved from time to time.

As long as Newbill can get his points and have teammates contribute significant offense, the Nittany Lions should be able to slip by Purdue this weekend.