Tag: Penn State Basketball

NCAA is shifting back to a regular recruiting schedule

The NCAA is allowing schools to get back into a normal recruiting routine this summer.

The recruiting world just got a little more exciting today. The NCAA announced a target date to return to regular recruiting activities, allowing schools to get back to the recruiting grind the way they prefer.

Beginning June 1, Penn State and every other school will be able to conduct on-campus evaluations and official visits and unofficial visits. The NCAA is making some adjustments to the recruiting process, at least for the short term, to accommodate those still challenged by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including allowing waivers for on-campus evaluations during unofficial visits.

It should be noted the NCAA acknowledged some schools may still be limited in their recruiting efforts due to local and state guidelines and policies that may be in place.

This, of course, is a positive development from the NCAA. The past year has been bizarre and anything but normal, for all walks of life, including sports and the college recruiting process. Knowing that the door soon will be opened to allow recruiting to get back to a more normal routine should be comforting for prospective athletes coming out of high school. It will also be good for coaches to get back to doing what they typically do in recruiting. The absence of face-to-face interaction and evaluations makes recruiting harder for everybody.

And for someone like James Franklin, this will be an opportunity to rejuvenate the recruiting process. Penn State’s Class of 2022 is already off to a terrific start. But knowing recruiting is returning to normal makes it even more imperative for Franklin and the staff to stay aggressive and stay ahead of the curve as much as possible.

This will also be good for new men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry, who takes on the task of rebuilding the Penn State program in an offseason that has been hit hard by the transfer portal. Allowing Shrewsberrey and his new staff to recruit with all of their tools available is a much more ideal way to go about improving the program.

This news comes in the same week the NCAA adjusted the transfer rules to allow all student-athletes immediate eligibility after their first transfer, regardless of what year they are as a student. Previously, student-athletes were required to sit out a full season before being eligible to play again. Now, as long as those students are granted a transfer release from their old school, they will be eligible to play immediately the following season.

See? Sometimes the NCAA does make good decisions. Now if they could just find a way to mandate multiple goal-line cameras for all football games.

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Former Penn State basketball coach is new head coach of UMBC Retrievers

As Penn State moves in a new direction with its basketball program, a former head coach is ready to write his next chapter on the sideline.

When the college basketball season ended for the Penn State Nittany Lions, it was widely expected interim head coach Jim Ferry would be moving on to another program as Penn State opted to go in an entirely new direction. Penn State did that with the hiring of Purdue assistant Micah Shrewsberry to be the new head coach. While Penn State and Shrewsberry have been busy filling out their new basketball staff, Ferry has found his own landing spot.

University of Maryland, Baltimore County announced on Monday Ferry will be the next men’s basketball coach of their program. Ferry will fill the vacancy with the UMBC program that opened up following Ryan Odom leaving to accept a coaching offer from Utah State.

UMBC is most famous for their historic upset of No. 1 seed Virginai in the 2018 NCAA Basketball Tournament. The Retrievers became the first men’s team to win a first-round game as a No. 16 seed.

Ferry was an assistant coach at Penn State from 2017 through 2020. He was named the interim head coach prior to the 2020-21 season after Penn State removed Pat Chambers as head coach shortly before the start of the season. Penn State went 11-14 with Ferry serving as the interim head coach.

Ferry will be taking on his first full-time head coaching job since before his time at Penn State, when he was the head coach of Duquesne from 2012 to 2017. He was also the head coach of Long Island from 2002 through 2012, with back-to-back NCAA tournament second-round appearances in 2011 and 2012.

Former Nittany Lion Lamar Stevens send along his congratulations on Twitter.

The move has also been praised by college basketball analyst Andy Katz…

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Penn State basketball adding another assistant to Micah Shrewsberry’s staff

Penn State continues to build a basketball staff for new head coach Micah Shrewsberry, and they just added a coach with good connections.

Penn State men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry continues to add to his first coaching staff in Happy Valley. According to a report from Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports, via Twitter, Penn State is preparing to welcome Mike Farrelly to the coaching staff in State College.

Farrelly will join Penn State after serving as an interim head coach at Hofstra for the 2020-21 season. He had spent the previous six seasons as an assistant coach for Hofstra. As noted by Thamel, the connections Farrelly brings with him to the Penn State staff in the northeast are a key part of the building process.

Farrelly is also familiar with the landscape of college basketball in the state of Pennsylvania. One of the positions Farrelly held prior to his time at Hofstra was as an assistant coach at Wilkes University in Wilkes Barre, PA, and he is a graduate of Saint Joseph’s University, where he played for former head coach and current Michigan assistant Phil Martelli.

Shrewsberry is still putting the finishing touches on his first coaching staff at Penn State, but the focus on bringing in assistants with experience in player development at the NBA level and blending it with coaches with connections throughout the fertile northeast appears to be good building blocks for laying a new foundation for a Big Ten basketball program in desperate need of new life.

Penn State has lost a handful of players through the transfer portal this offseason, leaving Shrewsberry and his staff in a tough spot to get started. But with this new staff coming together, perhaps it will be what is needed to start from the ground up.

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Former Penn State basketball player announces his transfer decision

After sitting in the NCAA transfer portal for a few months, former Nittany Lion Patrick Kelly knows where he will be continuing his career.

With no shortage of Penn State basketball players in the transfer portal, it seems transfer news could happen at almost any moment. On Saturday, we got one of those moments once again as former Nittany Lions forward Patrick Kelly made his transfer decision official.

In a post on his Twitter account, Kelly announced he will be continuing his college basketball career with the Fordham Rams.

After entering the NCAA transfer portal in January, in the midst of the college basketball regular season, it was always expected Kelly would be moving on from the Penn State program entirely. A new head coach in Micah Shrewsberry wasn’t going to change that sequence of events.

Kelly is the latest player from Penn State to decide to leave for another school after entering the transfer portal since the conclusion of the regular season. Jamari Wheeler previously opted to transfer to Ohio State and Myreon Jones recently made his transfer decision with the Florida Gators. Trent Buttrick will make his way up to the UMass Minutemen.

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BetMGM gives Penn State basketball long shot title odds. So you’re saying there’s a chance?

The new era of basketball at Penn State still has a long way to go to being a national title contender.

Penn State basketball is in the early stages of ushering in a new era with head coach Micah Shrewsberry at the helm. Shrewsberry takes over a program that has appeared in the NCAA Basketball Tournament just twice since 2000, and nobody is expecting him to turn the Nittany Lions into a national title contender any time soon.

But that hasn’t stopped BetMGM from putting odds on the Nittany Lions winning it all next college basketball season. And as you probably already may be expecting, Penn State doesn’t exactly have the best odds to be cutting down the nets next season.

Penn State is listed at +15000 to win next season’s college basketball national championship.

Here’s how the rest of the Big Ten stacks up on the BetMGM board for next year’s national championship…

Big Ten national championship odds via BetMGM

  • Michigan +800
  • Ohio State +1600
  • Illinois +2000
  • Michigan State +2000
  • Purdue +2000
  • Maryland +2500
  • Indiana +3500
  • Wisconsin +4000
  • Iowa +8000
  • Northwestern +8000
  • Nebraska +10000
  • Penn State +15000
  • Minnesota +20000

(Rutgers was not listed by BetMGM)

Other notable national championship odds via BetMGM

  • Gonzaga +600
  • Baylor +1200
  • Duke +1200
  • UCLA +1600
  • Villanova +1600
  • Alabama +2000
  • Kentucky +2500
  • Louisville +2500
  • North Carolina +2500
  • Loyola Chicago +15000
  • Pittsburgh +20000
  • Temple +20000

Place your legal sports bets online in CO, IN, NJ, TN, and WV at BetMGM. Bet now!

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Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Penn State basketball transfer Myreon Jones focusing on four SEC schools

Penn State’s leading scorer could make his transfer decision final as early as this week. Four SEC schools are in the mix.

One of Penn State’s top basketball players appears to be heading to the SEC to continue his college basketball career. Myreon Jones is closing in on making his decision for his transfer, and all four remaining candidates reside in the Southeastern Conference.

According to Dushawn London of 247 Sports, Jones is expecting to make a final decision between Florida, LSU, Arkansas, and Ole Miss. A decision could come as early as next week.

It had been previously reported that Ole Miss was among the first schools to contact Jones once he made the decision to enter the transfer portal. But programs like LSU and Florida would certainly appear to be lucrative transfer options. Arkansas also is coming off a solid run in the NCAA Tournament.

Jones was Penn State’s leading scorer in the 2020-21 season with 15.3 points per game.

Jones was one of six players from the Penn State men’s basketball team to enter their name in the NCAA transfer portal at the conclusion of the season. Izaiah Brockington decided to remain at Penn State to play for newly hired head coach Micah Shrewsberry. Guard Jamari Wheeler opted to commit to a Big Ten rival, Ohio State. Jones is currently sitting in the transfer portal with forwards John Harrar, Seth Lundy, Trent Buttrick, and Patrick Kelly.

Get to know new Penn State basketball head coach Micah Shrewsberry

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Penn State basketball transfer Jamari Wheeler commits to Ohio State

On the same day Penn State introduced its new basketball coach, one of its key players announced he is heading to the Buckeyes.

Penn State men’s basketball welcomed a new era as Micah Shrewberry delivered his first press conference as head coach. Just hours later, former Penn State guard Jamari Wheeler announced he will play basketball at Ohio State next season.

Wheeler announced he would enter the transfer portal two weeks ago. He originally committed to Jim Ferry at Duquesne and followed him to Penn State when Ferry took an assistant role under Pat Chambers. With both coaches now out of the picture in State College, Wheeler’s transfer shouldn’t come to a surprise.

What is, however, is Wheeler’s commitment to a conference rival like Ohio State. An All-Big Ten defensive player, Wheeler brings length and size to Columbus to help compete for a national championship.

Shrewsberry has his work cut out for him before the season even starts. John Harrar, Myreon Jones and Seth Lundy also announced they will be leaving the program. Fortunately for the Nittany Lions, Izaiah Brockington who entered the transfer portal as well, will return to Happy Valley.

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Micah Shrewsberry knows he can always call Brad Stevens or Matt Painter for some advice

 

Ohio State basketball gets Penn State transfer Jamari Wheeler

Ohio State received news that Penn State guard Jamari Wheeler will transfer to the program next year. The defense just got instantly better.

Just when you thought things might be relatively quiet with the roster for Ohio State hoops, we get word that the Buckeyes have landed Penn State transfer guard Jamari Wheeler.

Wheeler already notched four years in Happy Valley but has decided to utilize the extra year of eligibility the NCAA has allowed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 6-foot, 170-pounder averaged 6.8 points, 3.5 assists, and 4.2 rebounds in 31.2 minutes of play his senior season.

But where Wheeler may really make a difference for Ohio State is his ability to defend. He is known as an elite defender and created havoc against the OSU guards during a run in the second half of the first meeting between the Buckeyes and Nittany Lions. He averaged 1.8 steals per game this past season.

Wheeler announced the news on Twitter.

Buckeye head coach Chris Holtmann said that getting better defensively was a priority in the offseason. Little did we know it would come in the form of a transfer that will immediately mark some improvement on that end of the floor for one season in Columbus. Also, of note, the addition of Wheeler puts Ohio State one over the scholarship limit so we’ll be on the lookout to see who leaves the program to make room.

Welcome to the dark side Jamari. Games against Penn State should take on some unique fun next season.

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LOOK: Celtics coach Brad Stevens shows off his Penn State gear to support Micah Shrewsberry

Celtics head coach Brad Stevens wasn’t joking when he said his family got their Penn State gear to support Micah Shrewsberry.

If you have not heard by now, new Penn State men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry has a great relationship with Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens. Shrewsberry was an assistant for Stevens when the current NBA coach was the head coach of the Butler Bulldogs.

Stevens mentioned in a press conference recently that he and his family had already gotten their assortment of Penn State gear to support their family friend, Shrewsberry, after Shrewsberry was hired to be the new head coach of the Penn State men’s basketball program. At the time, it sounded a little like a throwaway line that coaches will sometimes say to support one of their guys.

Except it wasn’t.

On Tuesday, Penn State formally introduced Shrewsberry as the new basketball coach with an introductory press conference and some other fun media segments throughout the day. Joining Shrewsberry on a Facebook live video stream was none other than Stevens and his family.

Sure enough, the Celtics coach was sporting his fresh Penn State gear on camera.

Stevens wasn’t the only Celtic connection to hop in front of a webcam though. Jaylen Brown, who was coached up by Shrewsberry as an assistant under Stevens in Boston, hopped on to wish his former coach well.

https://twitter.com/PennStateMBB/status/1377030846926979076

With Shrewsberry as one of his coaches, Brown earned NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2017.

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Get to know new Penn State basketball head coach Micah Shrewsberry

Micah Shrewsberry knows he can always call Brad Stevens or Matt Painter for some advice

Penn State introduced Micah Shrewsberry as its next men’s basketball coach. Shrewsberry thanked those who helped him along the way.

Penn State formally introduced new men’s head basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry to the public on Tuesday with an introductory press conference. Shrewsberry touched on a number of topics as he gets settled in for his first head coaching job in the Big Ten and showed he understood the challenges facing the program he now takes over.

Fortunately for Shrewsberry, he feels as prepared as you can get for the task at hand. In his press conference on Tuesday, Shrewsberry thanked those who helped to get him to where he is now, including two of his most recent bosses, Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens and Purdue head coach Matt Painter.

“I couldn’t say enough about those two guys as friends, as people, before bosses,” Shrewsberry said as he gave thanks to Stevens and Painter. “They never treated me as a boss and as an employee. It was always as a great man.”

That kind of working relationship is a characteristic that should be expected of Shrewsberry with his new staff, as well as his players. It is only a small glimpse into Shrewsberry as a head coach, but that kind of understanding of how strong relationships can be should carry an encouraging message to the Penn State basketball program and its fans moving forward.

“I have to be myself but they taught me how to run a successful program,” Shrewsberry said.

Shrewsberry has indeed been on some successful programs with Stevens and Painter. Shrewsberry was on the Purdue staff for the Boilermakers’ 2019 Big Ten championship regular season. With Stevens, Shrewsberry was on the Butler coaching staff that took the Bulldogs to back-to-back national championship game appearances in 2010 and 2011.

What Celtics coach Brad Stevens had to say about new Penn State basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry

The relationships Shrewsberry has with both Stevens and Painter have been well documented already, and both coaches have offered their best wishes to their former assistant and friend as Shrewsberry becomes the head coach of the Nittany Lions. It will be comforting to know that if Shrewsberry does run into a problem, help may only be a phone call away.

“I have worked for two of the best coaches you could ever be around and work for in a short amount of time in those two guys. I’m forever grateful for their friendships. They still take my calls to this day.”

Yes, that includes Painter, who continues to be the head coach of one of the programs Penn State hopes to challenge down the line.

“Coach Painter is in our league and he’s still trying to help me with the struggles that I go through in these last nine days,” Shrewsberry said. “I know I have those two guys to reach out to.”

Penn State basketball is quite a rebuilding project, so Shrewsberry may need to make a few phone calls.

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