UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - With a semester under their belts, Brandon Taylor, Donovon Jack and Akosa Maduegbunam are growing more confident with each passing day.

All three Nittany Lion basketball freshmen have contributed to Penn State's 7-4 mark to start the 2012-13 season.  Taylor has started the last seven games for the Lions, averaging 9.1 points per game during that span.  The Tabernacle, N.J., native is shooting 45 percent from the floor and a team-best 39 percent from beyond the arc heading into Saturday's final non-conference game against Duquesne (4 p.m. on ESPN3).

Jack has come on strong of late, scoring eight and six points, respectively, in Penn State's last two outings.  The Reading native is visibly becoming more confident every time he steps on the floor.  Jack gave head coach Patrick Chambers big minutes in the overtime victory over Delaware State on Dec. 15.  Maduegbunam is beginning to find more consistency on the practice floor, which has led to minutes in the past two games.

The Lion freshmen have one more opportunity to grow on Saturday when Penn State takes a three-game winning streak into its contest against Duquesne before jumping into their first Big Ten season.  We caught up with all three to see how their first semester in college basketball transpired.

Follow GoPSUsports.com's Tony Mancuso on Twitter @GoPSUTony