History lesson. The great Industrial Revolution of America was built on the theory that interchangeable parts could be used to mass assemble.  Tuesday night at Beeghly Center, Jerry Slocum did exactly that, showed a wide array of talent, interchangeable parts.  The Penguins looked pretty good in defeating Notre Dame of Ohio 80-62 in the 2011 home opener.  A long-standing school record of 14 three pointers in a game was tied as the Penguins had the long shots falling to the clip of 66.7% in the first half.

“It was a tale of two halves”, remarked Slocum.  “In the first half, everything went in, and in the second half, nothing would go in.  The first half was a clinic of sharing the ball though.”

The Penguins did a tremendous job of scoring off of turnovers in the first half.  The Falcons committed ten first half turnover that led to 13 points for Youngstown State.  Conversely, YSU only had two first half turnovers and the Falcons did not get a point off of either turnover.  Balance was the norm for Slocum’s team in the first half.  Kendrick Perry had 16 points, was 3-3 on three-pointers, got five assists, was 5-7 from the line, and had a rebound.  Senior Ashen Ward had 14, and Blake Allen chipped in 12 points as YSU coasted to a 51-31 lead at the break.

The second half was much like the first in the sense that Slocum used his bench frequently.  It was a good opportunity to get some of the bench players quality minutes to ready them for tougher tests.  With 15:28 left in the game, Notre Dame actually cut the lead to 51-36, but the Penguins regained composure quickly and stretched their lead to 66-49 with 8:40 left in the game.

The win gets the Penguins off to a 2-0 start for the second straight season.  The win also elevates Slocum to sole possession of fourth place on the all-time Penguins Coaching wins list with 59.  He had been previously tied with John Robic, and now has 640 coaching victories in his 37th season.  Another landmark broken with the victory was Ashen Ward getting his 100th career three-pointer in the first half.

“I didn’t know that”, said Ward of his landmark trey.  “I always considered myself a shooter, now it is verified.”

Perry (below) had the best all-around game for YSU (2-0).  The sophomore poured in 18 points, had five assists, and seemed to be everywhere all night.  Ward finished the game with 17 points and Allen contributed with 14 more.  Eric Dummermuth paced the Falcons with 20 points and ten boards.

With 2:03 left in the game, Shawn Amiker, the last player to enter the game for the Penguins, hit a baseline runner while being fouled.  It was proof that interchangeable parts seem very much in order on Jerry Slocum’s assembly line.  The Penguins go back to work at home on Friday, welcoming U-C Riverside to town.

“We want to get the bench more involved earlier in games,” said Slocum.  “We have to develop those younger guys and it is better to get them in early and let the more experienced veteran players there in the second half.  We also have to play better at home.  At Samford, we played a full 40 minutes, it is much harder to play at home.  It’s a process and we have to keep growing.”