The Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team is a NCAA Division I college basketball team representing the Pennsylvania State University. They are a member of the Big Ten Conference and play home games at the 15,261-seat Jordan Center, moving there from boisterous Rec Hall during the 1995-96 season. Their student cheering section is known as the Legion Of Blue.
The program has nine NCAA tournament appearances with its best finish coming in 1954, reaching the Final Four. Its most recent appearance was in 2011, when the team lost to the Temple Owls in the round of 64. The program also has 11 appearances in the National Invitation Tournament, with the most recent being in 2018, when they beat Utah to win the NIT championship. They also won the NIT championship in 2009.
Video Penn State Nittany Lions basketball
In the shadow of football
At a school where the football program captures the vast majority of media and fan interest, the basketball program has historically struggled for relevance. According to ESPN.com writer and Penn State graduate Dana O'Neil,
In O'Neil's view, the "stepchild" status of the program was most starkly illustrated by the last weeks of the 2010-11 season. The team normally practices at a dedicated facility within the Jordan Center. However, for nearly a week in February, while the team was making a run for an NCAA at-large bid, Bon Jovi took over the entire BJC--including the practice facilities--for rehearsals for their upcoming concert tour, which opened at the BJC. The following week, the team was evicted from the BJC for a career fair and for the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon. On both occasions, the team was forced to practice at the nearby Intramural Building, a facility normally used by Penn State's volleyball teams. Although retrofitted with basketball hoops, the space left much to be desired. Multiple holes for volleyball net stanchions had to be taped over. During the Bon Jovi rehearsals, the hoops had been visibly lower than regulation height. While this error was corrected the following week, one of the hoops remained visibly misaligned.
Maps Penn State Nittany Lions basketball
Current coaching staff
Coaching history
Postseason
NCAA tournament results
The Nittany Lions have appeared in the NCAA Tournament nine times. Their combined record is 9-11.
NIT results
The Nittany Lions have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) eleven times. Their combined record is 27-9. They were NIT champions in 2009 and 2018.
CBI results
The Nittany Lions have appeared in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) one time. Their record is 1-1.
NBA players
NBA Draft
Other Players
The following is a list of undrafted Penn State players who have played at least one NBA regular or post-season game.
- Tim Frazier
- Chris Babb
- John Amaechi
- Joe Crispin
- Tom Hovasse
- Herschel Baltimore
- John Barr
Bold Denotes Active player
Season by season records
Penn State Men's Basketball Radio Affiliates
References
External links
- Official website
Source of article : Wikipedia