State High hit a dozen 3-pointers for the evening, including half of them coming in just the first quarter alone, in a 73-29 dismantling of Altoona at the Fieldhouse.

“All the credit to State College. They shot extremely well,” Altoona coach Doug Pfeffer said. “I think a couple times we made it easier on them not having a hand in their face. We stressed having a hand on the shooters at all times, and they knocked down shots. They put a clinic on that.

“That’s a reflection on the coaching staff, especially me. We have to do a better job of getting our team in the right position.”

State College jumped out to an 11-0 lead in the first two minutes of the game. Altoona climbed back to make it 11-7, but the visitors splashed three more treys from there to take a 22-10 lead after one period.

Cohen Cohran looks for a shot on the baseline Wednesday night at the Field House.

The Little Lions’ Nick Carr and Parker Thurley both had a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter, while Michael Powell and Connor Baldwin hit one each.

“We preach that kind of ball momentum,” State College coach Brian Scholly said. “When the ball has momentum, we have rhythm. We had momentum going into our shots, and I thought they did a good job of having an attacking mentality early to get that ball momentum.”

Although the Mountain Lions scored 21 points in the first half, it seemed like a moot point because State College shot the ball as well as it did.

State High knocked down three more from long distance in the second quarter to take a 45-21 lead to halftime.

Altoona struggled in the second half getting the ball in the net, totaling just eight points for the second half with a running clock for the majority of it.

Chris Wagner led Altoona with 11 points for the night.

State College picked up 13 from Carr, and 11 apiece from Thurley and Baldwin.

“We’re still figuring out what our team looks like,” Scholly said. “We preached coming up here and playing like a desperate team.

“We got a good win on Monday (vs. Hempfield), and we needed to see if we could take that energy and that commitment on the road. I know the guys were chomping at the bit to show that they could bring that on the road as well. I was glad with the urgency they played with tonight.”

Both teams are back in action on Friday night. Altoona visits Central Dauphin East, while State College hosts Harrisburg.

STATE COLLEGE (73): James 2 3-4 7, Carr 5 0-0 13, Thurley 4 0-0 11, M. Powell 1 2-2 5, Rhoades 2 0-0 4, Baldwin 5 0-0 11, Wager 3 0-0 8, Starks 2 0-0 4, Neilson 1 0-0 2, J.J. Powell 3 0-0 8, Furmanek 0 0-0 0, Williams 0 0-0 0. Totals — 28 5-6 73.

ALTOONA (29): Shields 2 0-0 4, Wagner 4 0-0 11, Chathams 1 1-2 3, E. Hicks 0 0-0 0, McCloskey 3 0-0 6, Pfeffer 1 0-0 3, Helsel 0 2-2 2, D. Hicks 0 0-0 0, Cochran 0 0-0 0, Coldwell 0 0-0 0, Crawford 0 0-2 0, Wuckovich 0 0-0 0, Gergely 0 0-0 0. Totals — 11 3-6 29.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

State College 22 23 14 14 — 73

Altoona 10 11 6 2 — 29

3-point goals: State College 12 (Carr 3, Thurley 3, M. Powell, Baldwin, Wager 2, J.J. Powell 2); Altoona 4 (Wagner 3, Pfeffer).

Records: State College (2-1); Altoona (0-4).

JV: Altoona, 44-40. High scorers–Cochran, A, 14; Radio, SC, 9.

Officials: Randy Burkett, Denny Detwiler, Bill Musser.