SELINSGROVE, Pa. - Penn State Harrisburg's men's basketball team suffered its first setback of the season in an 83-63 loss to No. 3 John Carroll in the opening contest of the National Beef Susquehanna Tip-Off Tournament at SU's Orlando W. Houts Gymnasium on Friday night, Nov. 17. 

Nate Curry led the way, finishing one rebound shy of a double-double with 21 points and nine boards. Donyae Baylor-Carroll added 13 points and four assists, while Alex Leiba chipped in with 11 points and six rebounds.

The Lions (3-1) grabbed an early lead when back-to-back layups from Leiba made it 9-7 before seven straight points from the Blue Streaks (3-0) forced Penn State Harrisburg to play catch up for the rest of the first half. After John Carroll pulled ahead by as many as seven at the 8:44 mark, Penn State Harrisburg cut the deficit to 23-22 when Curry knocked down a baseline jumper off a Baylor-Carroll feed with 4:28 remaining before halftime.

JCU responded with the game's first major run - a 10-0 spurt over the ensuing two minutes - and took a 35-26 advantage into the break. 

Another Curry jumper pulled the Lions to within seven early in the second half but the Blue Streaks answered every Penn State Harrisburg push with points of their own. Baylor-Carroll completed an old-fashioned 3-point play at the 17:39 mark but John Carroll netted the game's next seven points to push its lead to 46-31 with 15:30 remaining. 

The Lions cut the deficit to single digits as late at the 12:17 mark thanks to a Curry 3-ball but JCU kept them from making a run, holding Penn State Harrisburg at bay and building the advantage in the game's final minutes. 

NOTABLES

- No. 3 John Carroll is the highest-ranked opponent Penn State Harrisburg has ever faced. The Lions had previously defeated the last top-10 teams they faced (No. 9 St. Joseph (Conn.) - 2022, No. 6 Johns Hopkins (2020))

- The Lions shot just 33.8 percent from the field (23-for-68) and 24.1 percent from 3-point range (7-of-29).

- The Blue Streaks shot 50 percent from the floor and scored 44 points in the paint. 

- JCU got to the foul line 24 times, while Penn State Harrisburg managed just 12 free throw attempts.

- Curry was one rebound shy of a double-double. He netted a game-high 21 points and grabbed nine boards. He also surpassed the 1,200-point mark for his career.

- Baylor-Carroll scored 13 points and dished out four assists. 

- Leiba had 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the floor to go along with six rebounds and two blocks.

WHO'S NEXT? 

The Lions will face Cabrini in the National Beef Susquehanna Tip-Off Tournament Consolation Game on Saturday afternoon after the Cavaliers were edged by the hosts in Friday's second contest. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.

STAY CONNECTED 

Fans can keep up with Penn State Harrisburg Athletics all season long on Instagram, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Threads, and Youtube using the handle @pshbgathletics.