Penn State Nittany Lions basketball

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Penn State Nittany Lions
2015–16 Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team
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University Pennsylvania State University
Conference Big Ten
Location University Park, PA
Head coach Pat Chambers (4th year)
Arena Bryce Jordan Center
(Capacity: 15,261)
Nickname Nittany Lions
Student section Nittany Nation
Colors Blue and White
         
Uniforms
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Home jersey
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Team colours
Home
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Away jersey
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Team colours
Away
NCAA Tournament Final Four
1954
NCAA Tournament Elite Eight
1942, 1954
NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen
1952, 1954, 1955, 2001
NCAA Tournament appearances
1942, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1965, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2011
Conference tournament champions
Atlantic 10: 1991
Conference division season champions
Eastern Collegiate League West: 1977

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 Bryce Jordan Center, moving there from boisterous Rec Hall during the 1995–96 season. Their student cheering section is known as Nittany Nation.

The program has eight 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 10 appearances in the National Invitation Tournament, with the most recent being in 2009, when they beat Baylor to win the NIT championship.

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[1] Dana O'Neil,

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For years the basketball team has been a little sister of the poor stepchild to football, a winter afterthought given all the tending and care of a vegetable garden positioned in the middle of a nuclear field. Administrative support waffles between tepid applause and casual indifference.[2]

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 Bryce 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[1] and for the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon.[3] 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.[3]

Current coaching staff

Position Name Year Alma mater
Head coach Patrick Chambers 2011 Philadelphia University (1994)
Associate Head Coach Brian Daly 2011 University of Richmond (1994)
Associate Head Coach Keith Urgo 2011 Saint Joseph's University (1992)
Assistant Coach Dwayne Anderson 2013 Villanova University (2009)
Director of basketball operations Ross Condon 2011 Villanova University (2007)
Athletic trainer Jon Salazer 2001 Penn State (1993)
Director of Player Development Ryan Devlin 2014 University of Pittsburgh (2005)
Strength and conditioning coach Brandon Spayd 2013 Juniata College (2010)

Coaching history

Coach Years Seasons Record Pct. Cnf. Record Pct. Cnf. Titles Nat. Titles
No coach 1897–1915, 1917–1918 20 131–65–1 .668 0
Burke M. "Dutch" Hermann 1916–1918, 1919–32 15 148–73 .716 0
Hugo Bezdek 1919 1 11–2 .846 0
Earl "The Spike" Leslie 1933–36 4 29–28 .509 0–10 .000 0 0
John Lawther 1937–49 13 150–93 .617 17–13 .567 0 0
Elmer Gross 1949–54 5 80–40 .667 0
John Egli 1954–68 14 187–135 .581 0
Johnny Bach 1968–78 10 122–121 .502 9–11 .450 0 0
Dick Harter 1978–83 5 79–61 .564 13–11 .564 0 0
Bruce Parkhill 1983–95 12 181–169 .517 82–116 .414 1 0
Jerry Dunn 1995–2003 8 117–121 .492 45–87 .341 0 0
Ed DeChellis 2003–2011 8 114–138 .452 41–95 .301 0 0
Pat Chambers 2011–present 4 63-78 .447 15–56 .211 0 0
Totals 1897–present 116 1412–1322–1 .516 222–399 .357 1 0

Postseason

NCAA tournament results

The Nittany Lions have appeared in the NCAA Tournament nine times. Their combined record is 9–11.

Year Seed Round Opponent Results
1942 Elite Eight
Regional 3rd Place Game
Dartmouth
Illinois
L 39–44
W 41–34
1952 Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Kentucky
NC State
L 54–82
L 60–69
1954 First Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National 3rd Place Game
Toledo
LSU
Notre Dame
La Salle
USC
W 62–50
W 78–70
W 71–63
L 54–69
W 70–61
1955 First Round
Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Memphis State
Iowa
Kentucky
W 59–55
L 53–82
L 59–84
1965 First Round Princeton L 58–60
1991 #13 First Round
Second Round
#4 UCLA
#12 Eastern Michigan
W 74–69
L 68–71 OT
1996 #5 First Round #12 Arkansas L 80–86
2001 #7 First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#10 Providence
#2 North Carolina
#11 Temple
W 69–59
W 82–74
L 72–84
2011 #10 Second Round #7 Temple L 64–66

NIT results

The Nittany Lions have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) ten times. Their combined record is 22–9. They were NIT champions in 2009.

Year Round Opponent Result
1966 First Round San Francisco L 77–89
1980 First Round Alabama L 49–53
1989 First Round
Second Round
Murray State
Villanova
W 89–73
L 67–76
1990 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
3rd Place Game
Marquette
Maryland
Rutgers
Vanderbilt
New Mexico
W 57–54
W 80–78
W 58–55
L 62–75
W 83–81
1992 First Round Pittsburgh L 65–67
1995 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
3rd Place Game
Miami (FL)
Nebraska
Iowa
Marquette
Canisius
W 62–56
W 65–59
W 67–64
L 79–81
W 66–62
1998 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Finals
Rider
Dayton
Georgia Tech
Georgia
Minnesota
W 82–68
W 77–74
W 77–70
W 66–60
L 72–79
2000 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
3rd Place Game
Princeton
Siena
Kent State
Notre Dame
NC State
W 55–41
W 105–103
W 81–74
L 52–73
W 74–72
2006 Opening Round Rutgers L 71–76
2009 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Finals
George Mason
Rhode Island
Florida
Notre Dame
Baylor
W 77–73 OT
W 83–72
W 71–62
W 67–59
W 69–63

CBI results

The Nittany Lions have appeared in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) one time. Their record is 1–1.

Year Round Opponent Result
2014 First Round
Quarterfinals
Hampton
Siena
W 69–65
L 52–54

NBA draft

Year Name Team
1947
John Rusinko
Baltimore Bullets
1953
Herman Sledzik
Baltimore Bullets
1955
Jesse Arnelle
Fort Wayne Pistons
1965
Bob Weiss
Philadelphia 76ers
1966
Carver Clinton
Philadelphia 76ers
1974
Ron Brown
Boston Celtics
1981
Frank Brickowski
New York Knicks
1983
Mike Lang
New York Knicks
1984
Dick Mumma
Los Angeles Clippers
1999
Calvin Booth
Washington Wizards

Penn State Men's Basketball Radio Affiliates

[4]

References

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  4. http://www.gopsusports.com/ot/nl-update-affiliates.html 2011-2012 PSU Network Affiliates - Men's Basketball