There IS good reason to be frustrated. Penn State continues to show undying loyalty to a coach who has yet to yield meaningful results on the court. It’s very likely that PSU could be the only school in major D-1 basketball to show such patience and lack of action to a losing program. I don’t think at this point too many Penn State fans would shed a tear if DeChellis walked away from the program today. As fans, we’re continually slapped in the face as completely unacceptable results go unpunished.

However, it’s time for everyone to face reality. Ed DeChellis isn’t going anywhere. Neither is Tim Curley. And there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it, whether you like it or not. Sure, you can show your disapproval. You can write letters, send emails, stop buying tickets. But it’s not going to do a damn thing. It’s not that Curley doesn’t care. He just doesn’t have to care. Football will always pay the bills (along with the BTN).

So frankly, it’s up to you whether or not you want to support the program. I do, because I always have and always will. However, I sure wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t. But it’s time to move on past the bitching and crying. We can only look forward because Ed DeChellis is going to be the head coach for at least another year.

With the official release from Ed DeChellis and the Sports Information department, I think it’s safe to assume that the transfer train has left the station. As usual with such happenings, numerous unsubstantiated rumors were running wild around the internet. Taran Buie, who has had one hell of a strange year at State College High, was rumored to be expressing interest in getting out of LOI. That turned out to be false. Buie has endured so many strange rumors this year that it’s gotten to the point where anything out of State High now I’ll just believe to be more small town gossip. If there’s anything we have learned from the Battle/Buie family, it’s that their family comes first above all else. Buie’s family is here, he’s not leaving (at least not in the near future). It also appears that Cammeron Woodyard and Tim Frazier, subjected to their own rumors, are also staying with the program.

At first thought, this is nothing like the end of the Jerry Dunn era, which many frustrated fans will have you believe. The ‘family’ motto of the program has constantly been mocked the last 24 hours. I think that couldn’t be further from the truth.

• Adam Highberger – It’s unfortunate that his injury-riddled career is going to end, as he was pegged as one walk-on who DeChellis thought he could become a contributor. But if you know anything about the schooling and standards required to become a dentist, Highberger’s career aspiration, you would know that moving onto dental school far outweighs playing spot duty for this basketball program. I wish Adam well.
• Andrew Ott – The Villanova transfer is graduating with a business degree, but he still had a year of eligibility remaining. However, I think DeChellis and the coaching staff made the right decision in this case. If we want to reach NCAA goals next year, we needed to bring in another big man who can compete at this level. Ott was a serviceable backup in most cases, but he’s not the guy who’s going to win us ball games. We needed his scholarship (since we had none opening, or so we thought). His playing time significantly decreased towards the end of the year, and I think that was ED’s message to Ott. Yeah, Ott had a shoulder injury at the beginnning of February, but he was definitely healthy to play down the stretch and didn’t. Edwards and Borovnjak took his minutes. Ott might not be leaving on good terms, but this happens all the time across the country in college basketball. Scholarships are sacred and if you’re only averaging 10 MPG with 3 PPG with a degree in hand, you’re going to be shown the door. I wish the Ottzilla well.
• Bill Edwards – I’ve always had the suspicion that Bill never was really 100% certain with his decision to come here. It’s always hard to closely follow the recruitments of PSU recruits, since we usually don’t land too many big name players. But with how long Bill drew out the process (he decided roughly a week until the spring signing period was over), I just felt he didn’t know where he wanted to go. He kept saying how he was hoping for a bigger offer, and it never came, so he probably settled for Penn State. There were rumors that he didn’t like State College and those were probably true. It’s disappointing to see him go, because I think he could’ve become a heckuva player here. I wish Bill well and look forward to following the rest of his career.
• Chris Babb – Now this is the biggest surprise. I know Chris has been homesick. It’s gotta be tough when your home and family are 1500 miles away. People don’t realize how little basketball players get to go home. All the major holidays during the school year are during the season (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break). Then, they are on campus working out on their own for at least the second summer session, if not both. Throw in the fact that it snows in October here compared to his Arlington, Texas home, and I don’t think Chris’ decision to transfer had anything to do with the players or coaches. However, one must question, would Chris have transferred if we went 9-9 in the Big Ten this year instead of 3-15? Losing certainly breeds frustration and unhappiness and the tough year could’ve made Chris realize how much he misses home. I wish Chris well.

I don’t think these departures signal anything like the end of Jerry Dunn’s era. Players were leaving back then because they were upset with the coach. There was no team chemistry and it was just one huge mess. As of right now, I think it’s clear that the fan base is understandably a far bigger mess than the cohesiveness of the program right now. Talor Battle’s quote in the release further credits that belief.

“I know my teammates and myself are really looking forward to next season and have some things we want to achieve,” said Battle. “I’m looking forward to a really good off-season with the guys who want to be here and I love the guys we have coming back and think we can reach the goals we have set.”

Nonetheless, the departures of Babb and Edwards certainly are alarming for the health of the program. I don’t think their reasons for leaving are anything to get worked up about, but there are some serious holes now in the scholarship table. While the losses certainly aren’t good, I don’t think they cripple PSU’s chances next year (and they cannot be used as an excuse!). We do lose some experience and are going to have to rely on Marshall and Buie to step in right away. I think they’ll do just fine meshing with Frazier, Battle, and Woodyard’s games, though. We all know the backcourt wasn’t the issue this year, and I don’t believe it’ll be an issue next year. This year’s squad lacked the penetration/slasher ability at the 2-guard. Buie and Marshall will provide that, but now we’re lacking perimeter threats. Woodyard and Battle can’t carry it on their own. Another shooter would be beneficial, IMO.

The biggest loss of Babb and Edwards is the fact they were going to be the upperclassmen on the 2011-2012 squad. They were suppose to carry the torch during a ‘rebuilding’ year after Battle’s class graduates. There was already tremendous pressure on DeChellis and staff to deliver on the supposed 5 scholarships for 2011. But now, he has to fill 5 more scholarships for 2011-2012 (and hopefully keep current verbals, Trey Burke and Peter Alexis), 3 of which are available for next year. With so little talent so late in the recruiting game, DeChellis’ future depends on who he lands with these scholarships. A huge mistake in DeChellis’ regime was handing out three scholarships in the 2005 class to European players who never produced anything (Milos Bogetic, Joonas Suotamo, and Nikola Obradovic). This program cannot afford such a blunder again.

However, I’m not sure what we can really expect on the recruiting trail anymore. All the momentum gained from the 2009 NIT championship has been lost with our crappy year this season. We were getting so close to rounding out some stability and class balance, but it’s crumbled a bit with these transfers. Looking at the recruiting calendar, after tomorrow DeChellis will only have another 10 days or so of a contact period in April. Spring signing period runs from April 14th-May 19th. The odds of the staff bringing in the quality of talent in so little time is slim-to-none. But that’s what faces the program right now. I think they should only focus on filling two scholarships right now for next year, a big who can play and a perimeter shooter (preferably JuCos for the sake of class balance). Take another big if you’re positive he can play. They cannot afford to gamble on kids at this point. If you have to save another ship for the 2011 class, so be it.

So now it’s time to scour the internet to find any tidbits we can of who PSU is after. Some names for 2010 are Majok Majok, JuCo Dwight McCombs, Eric McKnight, and Brice Kofane (Buie’s AAU teammate). Although, I don’t think any of those kids have ‘high’ interest in PSU. Hopefully we get some positive news on the recruiting front in the next month…

“Yes, Ed will continue to be our head coach,” Curley wrote. “I like the way he runs our program, his assistant coaches and players in the program. I believe we are better than our record shows. Ed and I share the same vision for the program. I have complete confidence in Ed and his staff. No one will work harder or bring greater passion to making the necessary progress.”

Yes, we all know of Ed’s outstanding pedigree off the court. But the reality is he just wrapped up his 4th last place finish in 7 seasons. Disappointing seasons like this one are far more tolerable if the coach has proven his worth with prior accomplishments. Two NIT appearances (with an NIT championship), a 27% Big Ten winning percentage, and 1 winning season do not excuse this underachieving year. I’m not going to turn this into a rain on DeChellis parade. I don’t think he’s done anything worthy enough to justify the 650K he’s making, and I don’t think he’s ever going to turn around the basketball program (mostly because of his inability to recruit at the level needed to be competitive in this league). That’s all I’m going to say about him, but it’s not about DeChellis, nor should it be. It should be about the program that we all support and Tim Curley oversees. We, as fans, have never gotten any sort of ‘vision’ for this program from the Athletic Department. We just get blasted with how great of a person DeChellis is. ED has received two contract extensions in his time here, after signing an original 6 year deal back in 2003. These are quotes from Curley during each statement about ED:

April 2003 – Ed DeChellis is hired

“We are thrilled to welcome Ed DeChellis back to Penn State as our new men’s basketball coach,” Curley said. “Ed was a highly-respected member of our basketball staff for 10 years and was instrumental in the recruitment of some of the greatest players to play at Penn State. During his seven years as head coach at East Tennessee State, Ed has taken the Buccaneers from the bottom of the Southern Conference standings to three North Division titles and the Southern Conference Championship this past season. Ed has demonstrated the ability to recruit and lead student-athletes, playing an exciting brand of basketball and developing a strong program across the board. We look forward to working with Ed, his staff and players on reaching the lofty goals we have for the men’s basketball program.”

August 2006 – Ed’s contract (for recruiting purposes) is extended after an NIT appearance in his 3rd year

“We are very excited with the direction coach DeChellis has our men’s basketball program heading and are pleased that he will continue to lead the program into the future,” Curley said. “Ed has energized the program and the Penn State basketball community and the team has made great strides in his first three years. We believe he and his staff have laid the ground work for continued success both on and off the court for years to come.”

October 2009 – Ed’s contract is extended again after the NIT championship

“We are very excited about the significant progress our men’s basketball program has made under Coach DeChellis and are thrilled that he will continue to lead the program into the future,” Curley said. “Ed and his staff have brought tremendous work ethic, passion and energy to the program and the Penn State basketball community. This past season was very special. All the time and hard work by Ed and his team resulted in many outstanding victories and program firsts, capped by the NIT Championship in front of thousands of enthusiastic Penn State fans in Madison Square Garden. Ed and his staff have built a great foundation for continued success on the court, in the community and in the graduation of our basketball student-athletes for years to come, and I am excited about the direction and leadership Ed is providing to the program.”

Not once in any of those quotes do we get any sort of ‘vision’ or ‘expectations’ from Curley. Of course when Ed is asked about goals and what not, he rattles off the coach speak, like he should. Winning the Big Ten, going to the NCAAs. But we haven’t really been close to any of that in 7 years (with the exception of last year). So what the hell is Tim Curley’s vision for this program? If they are the same as DeChellis’, how on earth can you continue to let such poor job performance and futile results go without harm?

I just don’t get it. We’ve watched the AD significantly upgrade the resources within the program. You would think they were spending money so they can eventually win. I’ve been tolerant to the AD’s patience with ED, while doing so. Not too many coaches can go from 6-10 to 2-14 within the conference in your fourth year and still have the job. But they let DeChellis persevere and it looked like PSU was starting to build some momentum…

Then this year happened. All I want is an explanation of the athletic department’s expectations. Obviously, graduating players and representing the university are going to be priorities and that’s fine. But do we really not care at all about winning? That’s the message they continue to send to fans with blanket statements like ‘we’re better than our record indicates’ (have they not heard of Degree of DeChellis?) While that is certainly true this year, have they not realized that we’ve always had a better record than our play indicated the previous 6 seasons?

Now is there a chance for improvement next year? Obviously, yes. But as I’ve said before, one must look deeper into the future. The time to change regimes is now, not after next year. 2011-2012 is looking very bleak. You thought the frontcourt this year was bad…

So what is the ultimatum next year (if there even is one)? Many people are saying NCAAs or bust, but I wouldn’t be shocked if another NIT-like 2009 season occurred that DeChellis will still be here in 2011. Success is not a priority, especially since football pays the AD’s bills. All I know is if ED can’t get to the NCAA tournament with a player like Battle, I’m pretty sure it’s never gonna happen.

If Penn State ever overcomes its losing basketball tradition, it won’t be because of a coaching change or monster recruiting class.  It’ll be from a cultural shift in the hierarchy of the athletic department — a decision to make winning a priority by investing resources and energy into the program instead of being satisfied flirting with the NCAA bubble every eight years.

Now lucky for me, I addressed this topic already. In fact, I did so before the season and it was my first real post on this new site. I don’t know how anybody can say the AD doesn’t care when they’ve made all of those changes in the last 3-4 years. Ed DeChellis, while he might not have won on the court, got the AD to level the playing field against our own conference. If there’s anything to remember about ED’s era of PSU hoops, it’s that because he might’ve been the only one able to do so. That is why he probably was the best hire back when Dunn ‘resigned’. No one in their right mind should’ve taken the PSU job in 2003, unless they genuinely cared about the school and had the patience to wait for the AD to catch up the program to the level of competition on the recruiting trail in the Big Ten.

As far as our basketball expenses go, below is the compiled data for the 2008-2009 athletic year (from the Department of Education). The expenses are obviously the figures for each Big Ten school’s basketball program. The Salary column represents the average male head coaching salary at each school. The Coach column is the total number of coaches that went into the average salary figure.

There is no reason Ed should be allowed to coach another basketball season here at Dear Old State. His 7 years of basketball here have produced nothing but overmatched players (with few exceptions) playing aimless basketball. With the transformation happening off the court within the program, I understand and am a little more forgiving that DeChellis has been allowed to coach here for so long with such futile results. However, this 2009-2010 campaign has been a complete failure, which is even more amazing when you consider that many people didn’t even have the expectation to go to the NCAAs this season. There are no excuses to go 0-12 with a roster compiled of entirely your own players.

I’m not mad whatsoever about Ed’s extension right before the year. People think PSU honestly wants Ed to coach here until 2014, despite never getting to the NCAA tournament in 6 previous years. The reality of the extension, though, was to provide the fake appearance of Ed’s job security to recruits. It has burned PSU in the past. Last year was a great year for the program as we finally landed on the map nationally, even if the season ended in the Not Important Tournament. But it’s becoming more and more evident that the reasons for last year’s magical run were the players on the court, not the coaches.

I posted how futile our offensive ‘system’ is by exposing how we played against Michigan State. I have never seen a team just straight up ignore the option of dumping the ball into the low post and forcing the defense to collapse just a little bit. This chuck and duck bullshit has been going on for too long. It is so frustrating to watch that I have stopped caring about the team. At least before this year, we had Claxton and Cornley, who would post up, demand the ball, and produce. This year, there’s nobody with that mentality or anybody with the ability. But what’s sad is if you look at the bigger picture, Penn State’s offense since Ed DeChellis has been here hasn’t been the problem. The defense, or lack there of, has.

Below is Ed’s conference games only, tempo-free profile since he’s been here. I could not find the data for Ed’s first season in 2003-2004, but frankly, I’m sure it was just as bad. Here’s some explanation of what the data stands for:

• PPP is points-per-possession, or PSU’s offensive production.
• O-PPP is the opponents points-per-possession, or PSU’s defensive production.
• EM stands for Efficiency Margin, which is obviously the difference between the two.
• Actual is Penn State’s Big Ten W/L record (and where they placed)
• Mean is what Penn State’s record should be, based on their EM. Better explanation here by John Gasaway, the originator of most of these stats.

As you can see, Penn State’s defense has consistently been the worst over the years (in a conference whose reputation is solely on that aspect of the game). The only time it has been average, PSU went on to win the NIT. For a while there, the problem was PSU never had the athletes to match up in this conference, but that hasn’t been the case the last 3 years. In fact, I find this team to be one of the most athletic teams we have had in a long time. I even said I thought this year’s squad had the potential to be one of the best defensive teams from PSU ever in the preseason, but that obviously has not been the case. You can also see in the table that PSU has actually won a lot more games than they ‘should have’, based on their per-possession play. That basically means Ed’s already terrible 29-82 conference mark should actually be even worse (something like 21-90). I mean just compare the 2007-2008 team to this year’s. They have identical efficiency margins but the 07-08 team (which Gasaway coined as the most fortunate team since 2006) has 7 more wins.

I’m sick of watching this brand of basketball, if you can even call it that. Ed’s proven to be over his head coaching at this level. I don’t even care if PSU wins their last 6 games and finishes 6-12 in the conference. For this program to make the NCAA tournament, a new head coach has to be put in place. This team has underachieved and just looks lost most of the time. Players aren’t developing and the young players aren’t even given the chance. I can go on and on about my gripes with ED from the toilet paper soft non-conference schedule year-after-year, the numerous wasted scholarships on the recruiting trail, the apparent illogical player substitutions, his ‘use’ of timeouts, or his refusal to fight for his team over any sort of questionable call (1 technical in 7 years), but I’ll digress.

However, there are plenty of arguments for why Penn State won’t fire Ed after this season. First, they just gave him an extension last year. I’m skeptical that they would be willing to buyout that 4 year contract like everybody else. Also, Talor Battle and his class will be seniors next year. I always had the feeling since the start of the offseason that Ed was going to get 2 more years (after last season) to get to the NCAA tournament with his guys. The expectation wasn’t to do so this year anyway, so Curley and company might still allow Ed the opportunity next season. Also, we’re Penn State, where coaching stability reigns supreme. I like that we are willing to give coaches their fair share of time here to build a program, which is opposite of the schizophrenic atmosphere of coaching changes in college athletics these days. But I will also admit we are loyal to a fault.

Here is why I think it would be a big mistake to give Ed an 8th year. While you always run the risk of a mass exodus of players with a new head coach, I’m willing to bet that doesn’t happen if a new coach is brought in next month. Battle is the only player who will have bigger and better opportunities elsewhere, but does he really want to sit out a year to wait for just one year at a school? Or jeopardize an NBA career by going too early? His brother would also have to wait, too, assuming he would want to be released from his LOI if Talor leaves. Throw in the fact that the low-income family has already moved to State College and, IMO, Battle and Buie have no choice but to stay in 2010-2011. Also, I’ve always had the feeling that all the players on this team genuinely like each other and there’s no off-the-court chemistry issues (unlike the holdovers from the Dunn era). I think they would all stay if a new coach is brought in, or at the very least, only a few would leave on their own accord. You also give the new coach a cupboard to work with. He would have 5 senior scholarship players and an entire team returning with the addition of Buie. Not only would he have the opportunity to have some moderate success right away, but he also gets the opportunity to have a full year to fill 5 scholarships with his first recruiting class. It is a great time after this season to make a transition to a new coach.

But say PSU keeps DeChellis. What are the odds that a 2-16 or worse team is going to have an NCAA-like turnaround next year with the exact same players? I think it would just delay the inevitable (if you look around the conference, PSU isn’t the only team returning plenty of guys next season). The situation then plays out like this. Battle and his class leave along with tons of experience. Buie, with 3 years of eligibility, will have plenty of opportunities to transfer. The 5 scholarships for 2011 are filled with Ed’s guys, and they probably ask for their release with a new coach. The new coach could be left with just 7 scholarship players and only a few weeks to fill the 2011 class. That is a 2 year rebuilding project, at least, since we do things the right way here (that means no shortcuts like Calipari). The little stability that Ed has generated is all for nothing.

Yes, this is all speculation. But this analysis is something athletic directors have to consider when evaluating their programs. Keeping Ed for next season is a mighty big risk, but firing him now could come with a pretty big price tag. Throw in the fact that they’re going to have to pay more for a new coach, no matter who it is. It’s quite the dilemma. Many people feel strongly that PSU will act either way. I have no idea how it will unfold. All I know is Tim Curley can’t be pleased with the return he’s getting on the investments made on the program in recent times.

I guess we’ll find out his decision in a month.

Editor’s Note: If you don’t want to spend the time reading this novel, you should just scroll down to the end and read the final counts.

Possession #1 – 7 passes around the perimeter leads to a badly missed 3 from Babb. Nobody posted up once to call for the ball. Entry Pass Count – 0. Center Touches – 0. Shot Clock Usage – :28 seconds

Possession #2 – Jeff Brooks receives the first pass and drives into the lane. His penetration forces Derrick Nix to help, leaving Andrew Jones open on the low block. Brooks sees it and passes the ball. Jones fumbles the pass out of bounds for an unforced turnover. Poor execution on both players’ account. EPC – 0. CT – 1. SCU – :09.

Possession #3 – Ball screens and dribble handoffs for 20 seconds. Nobody posts up once. Battle is left with the ball 30 feet from the hoop. His forced drive marked the first time the ball crossed the 3 point line. He doesn’t even make it past the foul line before he loses the ball. Turnover #2. EPC – 0.  CT – 1. SCU – :28.

Possession #4 – Miscommunication on MSU’s part leaves Chris Babb with the ball at the wing and an open baseline. Good recognition by Babb to drive and draw the foul. He made 1 of 2 at the line. EPC – 0. CT -1. SCU – :14.

Possession #5 – Another questionable switch by MSU leaves Kalin Lucas on Jeff Brooks. Brooks actually posts up, which leads to the first entry pass by PSU. Good recognition by the team on the mismatch, but Brooks misses the shot because of good help defense by Nix. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :21.

Possession #6 (Transition) – Battle, probably bored from the last 5 possessions, forces a 2 on 3 break. He gets caught underneath after he drives it all the way to the hoop, but right when it looks like he’s about to pull it back out, he makes a crafty spin move and puts up a reverse lay up. He misses, but David Jackson grabs the offensive board and lays it back in. Good job by Brooks and DJ crashing the boards. Poor job by MSU getting back and boxing out.

Possession #7 (Transition) – A mishandled MSU pass leads to a steal by Chris Babb, who recognizes Battle running down the court. Battle makes a pretty over the shoulder catch and slams it home.

Possession #8 – After some more Battle/Babb/Jackson exchanges around the perimeter, Brooks attempts to post up again. However, he does so roughly 10 feet away from the hoop and ends up receiving the pass about 17 feet away on the wing (not an entry pass). Brooks aggressively (or recklessly, depending on your perspective) drives the baseline against Durrell Summers. Summers knocks the ball out of bounds with 14 seconds on the shot clock, a blessing considering Brooks was going absolutely nowhere with the ball. The inbounds play was pass the ball back to Brooks, who’s 30 feet away from the hoop. Brooks catches the ball and motions for Battle to come get the ball. This exchange somehow takes 5 seconds. Talor Battle now has the ball 30 feet away with 9 seconds left on the shot clock. He looks to the coaching staff for direction, another 3 seconds wasted. After realizing he is on his own, he calls David Jackson out for a screen, but DJ slips and Battle feeds him the ball out of the double team. DJ has the rock near the top of the key about 22 feet away with less than :03 on the shot clock (which is audibly known by the student section). He has enough room to put up the shot, but he somehow thinks he can make another pass to Ott underneath. Shot clock violation. Turnover #3. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :35 seconds.

Possession #9 – Brooks drives this time from the corner on Draymond Green, a much better match-up. He gets into the lane and makes a nice kickout pass to David Jackson, who nails the 3. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :09.

Possession #10 – Battle forces a three early in the possession off a ball screen from Jackson. Poor shot selection from Talor, as he airballed the shot. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :08.

Possession #11 – Battle’s not in, but nothing really changes. Ott (or anybody else for that matter) never posts up. Frazier tries to split a double team and penetrate twice, but MSU plays good defense. Possession ends in a fall-away 24 footer from Babb. Clank. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :29.

Possession #12 – Battle beats Summers on a drive off the bounce and forces a foul. On the reset, PSU runs the same inbounds ‘play’ aka throw the ball into the backcourt. Mike Kebler, the defensive star apparently, nearly forces the easy turnover but doesn’t. Frazier and Battle are on the floor together this time, but again, nothing changes. Only 2 passes occur throughout this 25 second possession. Frazier to Battle back to Frazier. Frazier tries to penetrate again and force something, but he travels. Turnover #4. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :27.

Possession #13 – A foul as Battle brings the ball up leads to another opportunity for PSU to run an inbounds play. Once again, PSU is forced to throw the ball out to Frazier near halfcourt. After a few more perimeter passes, Frazier beats his man off the dribble (pretty easily in fact), but has no one to pass to. He misses a tough 8 foot runner in the lane. EPC – 1. CT – 1. SCU – :18.

Possession #14 – Battle forces the issue after a rebound, despite once again not having numbers. He still beats his defenders and gets to the hoop, but there’s no way he’s getting a shot up. He makes a nice dish to Jones in the paint, who gets fouled. The inbounds play goes to Brooks on the wing this time, but MSU wasn’t pressing the issue. In fact, I’m not entirely sure what MSU is doing here. They did not seem to be ready as the ball was inbounded. It took them a while for everybody to get on a man, and their confusion led to Battle being guarded by Draymond Green. After driving by Green on the break before the foul, Battle decides to pull up from 3 in Green’s face. Swish. EPC – 1. CT – 2. SCU – :14.

Possession #15 – Battle is coming off the ball, but Chris Allen is able to stay with him through some screens. Multiple exchanges around the perimeter once again. Andrew Jones gets a pass off a slip screen from Battle, about 12 feet from the hoop on the baseline. Jones makes a nice explosive move to the basket, but too bad he can’t explode vertically. He gets blocked by Raymar Morgan, and MSU gets the deflection. EPC – 1. CT – 3. SCU – :25.

Possession #16 – Not sure what the hell MSU is doing this possession, either. Summers and Allen miscommunicate right away and leave Battle wide open. Deep 3 is good. EPC – 1. CT – 3. SCU – :11.

Possession #17 – PSU tries to find Battle coming off a double screen, but it’s well-defended. After a few more exchanges around the perimeter, Battle gets a little daylight and puts up a long 2-pointer. He is fouled on the attempt. He makes 1 of 2 at the line. EPC – 1. CT – 3. SCU – :26.

Possession #18 (Transition) – Fast break with Battle going 1-on-1 with Chris Allen. Impressive defense by Allen forcing Battle to miss a tough layup without fouling. Not sure if CA got a piece of it or not.

Possession #19 – More of the same as far as exchanges around the perimeter.  With 8 seconds left on the shot clock, Battle has the ball 40 feet away from the hoop. He dishes to DJ, who pretty much has to put up a contested 3. No good. EPC – 1. CT – 3. SCU – :29.

Possession #20 – I should mention this possession is coming after ED called a timeout. Andrew Jones receives a pass this time. He catches it at the top of the key and immediately passes it off. I don’t even know how else to describe this anymore. It’s more of the same, but I’ve felt like I’ve said that at least 4 times already. Actually, no. I’m going to call it ‘Ring Around the Perimeter’ or RAP, for short. I think everybody on the court touches the ball once, but the ball never crosses the 3 point line. Babb is left with the ball at the top of the key with time running down. He’s doubled and forces a pass to DJ at the elbow with 5 seconds left. Derrick Nix inexcusably fouls to bail PSU out. The inbounds goes back to halfcourt again (this is after a media timeout because of Nix’s foul). Jones gets another pass, but he’s not a threat 25 feet from the hoop. After plenty of RAP, Babb fakes out Lucas (off the ball) and drains an open 3. EPC – 1. CT – 5. SCU – :31/:18.

Possession #21 – RAP. Jones doesn’t touch the ball and sets weak screens. A little dribble penetration by Battle and a kick to DJ for yet another 3. He misses but the rebound is deflected out of bounds. Good hustle by Brooks to save it to Battle under the hoop who gets fouled. He makes both free throws. EPC – 1. CT – 5. SCU – :18.

Possession #22 – Babb gets some separation as his defender gets caught behind Jones after a screen, but he forces a three from the top of the key and misses badly. Not a good shot, considering Babb took 3 or 4 steps backwards before shooting off the dribble. EPC – 1. CT – 5. SCU – :15.

Possession #23 – RAP. Only thing different is Battle forces a drive and tries to kick it to Jones. It’s a low pass and Jones isn’t gonna do anything with it anyway, so he kicks it back out. Battle drains a 35 footer with :06 on the shot clock. Go team! EPC – 1. CT – 6. SCU – :29.

NOTE: Should I even mention at this time that Michigan State gets Durrell Summers a WIDE OPEN jumper as the shot clock expires? And they had to inbound the ball with only :07 on the shot clock.

Possession #24 – Andrew Jones gets the ball twice on this possession. Both times are out at the 3 point line. This great possession ends with an 18-foot airball off the dribble from Cam Woodyard as the shot clock expires. EPC – 1. CT – 8. SCU – :35.

Possession #25 – Frazier tries to penetrate and gets fouled after 20 seconds of RAP. He goes to the line for 1-and-1. Frazier makes the first and misses the second. EPC – 1. CT – 8. SCU – :20.

Possession #26 – RAP. Jones gets a touch out there. Frazier splits another double team and gets penetration, but MSU recovers nicely on defense. Battle has to force a contested 3 that doesn’t drop. EPC – 1. CT – 9. SCU – :32.

Possession #27 – Battle’s dramatics draw a foul on Chris Allen early in the possession. Talor makes the first at the line, but misses the 2nd. Jones makes a nice tip on the rebound, though, and PSU gets the ball again. Steve Lavin comments that PSU now has a chance for a 2 for 1 at the end of the half, but PSU RAPs it for 30 seconds. Jones is included. Tim Frazier, the pure shooter that he is, has to put up a contested 3. “Wow, a rock” was the description from Lavin. EPC – 1. CT – 10. SCU – :32.

HALFTIME: Thanks to some crazy hot shooting by Battle, PSU is down only 6. Yes, they only threw one entry pass to somebody posted up on the low block (when Brooks was posting up Lucas).

Possession #28 – Jackson off another slip screen makes a nice, aggressive drive to the hoop. He just doesn’t finish the lay up. EPC – 1. CT – 10. SCU – :09

Possession #29 – Michigan State falls asleep on defense. Jones is left open on the low block. We’ll count it as an entry pass even though he’s not posting up anybody. Battle finds him and Jones slams it home. EPC – 2. CT – 11. SCU – :07.

Possession #30 – RAP. Kalin Lucas backs off Battle, I guess respecting Battle’s driving ability (and possibly his own bum ankle), so Talor puts it up and buries another 3. EPC – 2. CT – 11. SCU – :16.

Possession #31 – Jones gets two more touches out at the top of the key (and a shot fake one time to boot! He had me fooled). Battle makes an NBA 3 with a guy in his face at the buzzer. Go team! EPC – 2. CT – 13. SCU – :32.

Possession #32 – Jones gets the ball because Battle picks up his dribble. Chris Allen cheats way too hard to help on Battle and leaves Babb wide open in the corner for a 3. EPC – 2. CT – 14. SCU – :20.

NOTE: At this time, I’m starting to feel like I’m coming across as criticizing Jones throughout this post. I just wanted to clarify that is not my intent. I’m simply informing what his ‘role’ is in this offense the coaching staff is running.

Possession #33 – Jeff Brooks wants his own possession. After a defensive rebound, Jeff brings the ball up the court himself. He then decides to not give it up to anybody and drive all the way to the hoop. His short 5 foot floater goes in and out. EPC – 2. CT – 14. SCU – :08.

Possession #34 – Jones participates in RAP. Brooks gets an open look from 3 but it’s long. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :12.

Possession #35 – RAP for 15 seconds until Kalin Lucas reaches in on Battle. On the reset, more RAP until Battle dishes while in mid shot to DJ in the corner for a clean 3. He buries it. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :18/:14.

Possession #36 – RAP until a switch has Babb guarded by Garrick Sherman. Chris makes a nice drive and kick to DJ, who dishes off to a wide open Talor Battle. MSU was chasing as soon as Babb drove. Battle’s 3 is money. At this point Talor has 24 of PSU’s 41 points and is 6-8 from 3. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :25.

Possession #37 – This possession starts with Brooks coming off a down screen and receiving the ball at the top of the key. Jeff then dribbles the ball back towards Battle like he’s going to hand it back off, but he keeps it and splits the double team with a smooth spin move. He finishes the play with a tough 8 foot fall-away bank shot. It was his usual glimpse of greatness that usually happens once a game.  EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :15.

Possession #38 – Brooks, now overconfident, forces a baseline drive that isn’t there. He attempts to pass it back out to Babb, but it’s low. Not really sure why Babb makes such a feeble effort to catch it, either. He most likely wasn’t ready for it, but who knows. Turnover #5 as Lucas picks up the loose ball.

Possession #39 – RAP for 25 seconds. Battle then has to decide on his own what to do. He makes the pass to Babb who puts up a contested 23 footer as the shot clock winds down. It’s long but the rebound goes out of bounds off MSU. The inbounds pass has to be tracked down by Battle 85 feet away from the hoop. More RAP for 25 seconds. Battle then penetrates and draws the defense. He kicks it out to DJ for an open 3. PSU takes the lead. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :33/:30.

Possession #40 – Battle shoots a quick 3 early in the shot clock, but the ball goes out of bounds off MSU. I must make a note that Mike Kebler has entered the game sometime before this possession. Kebler got screened by DJ before this shot, and I wouldn’t say he contested it more than Allen/Lucas or anybody else on Battle’s shots all game. It was just a quick shot by Battle (who was moving to his left when he caught and fired) and he missed. I don’t think Kebler’s defense had anything to do with it. The inbounds pass is the first time PSU executes any sort of set. Frazier catches a pass on the wing, not in the backcourt. Battle, the inbounder, comes off a nice downscreen by Ott and fires up a clean 3. Steve Lavin called it a ‘good’ look. Unfortunately,  Talor misses again (progressing toward the mean?). Kebler was guarding Frazier on the shot, anyway. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :10.

Possession #41 – Tim Frazier gets a little too crazy here. He’s once again able to get right to the rim but the MSU defense collapses on him and swats his shot. The deflection goes out of bounds off Ott. Wasted possession. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :06.

Possession #42 – Andrew Ott gets called for 3 seconds. Mind-numbing turnover considering what this offense has done in the paint the entire course of this game. Turnover #6. EPC – 2. CT – 15. SCU – :12.

Possession #43 – More RAP. Although this time Frazier comes off a curl cut and receives a pass at the foul line. MSU defense is chasing. Eventually Battle ends up with the ball and drives the baseline. He’s cut off, but finds Ott, who makes a strong dribble towards the hoop. Maybe his move was too strong, or Draymond Green wrapped around his body and picked his pocket. All I know is Ott loses the ball going up and it deflects high off the backboard and back in play. Frazier corrals the loose ball but there’s only :10 on the clock. I guess he felt the need to penetrate and create on his own because he misses a wide open Chris Babb, who was calling for the ball 5 feet from him. Frazier instead drives and dishes to Talor in a bad spot underneath the hoop. Talor then tries to dribble amongst a big crowd with nowhere to go and it goes off his foot. Turnover #7. Nothing impressive by Kebler, yet. EPC – 2. CT – 16. SCU – :31.

Possession #44 – Frazier is holding the ball as the Lions try to run a set to get either Battle or Babb open coming off the ball. Ott sets a great pick of Kebler and Battle is open. It was a tough angle, but I’m not sure why Tim didn’t try to make the skip pass. Anyway, nothing happens for 20 seconds so Battle has it at the top of the key with the clock winding down. DJ starts to come out for a screen so Kebler prepares for it by taking away Battle’s right. Battle waves off DJ, and then drives to his left. The problem is the entire team is on the right side of the court. Poor spacing gives Battle nowhere to go with the rock when the D collapses. He pulls it back out and Ott tries to come out and screen. At this point, there’s just not enough time for anything to materialize, and Battle is stuck trying to heave a fadeaway 30 footer, but it’s after the shot clock buzzer. Kebler is in his grill on this ‘attempt’, which prompts praise from MSU’s bench and the broadcast team. However, I don’t see how Kebler is responsible for the outcome of this possession. Turnover #8. EPC – 2. CT – 16. SCU – :35.

NOTE: At this point, I would also like to note that I have no hate or bias towards Mike Kebler. I’m just very skeptical that a walk-on player, who has not played much at all this year, can shut down somebody as good as Talor Battle.

Possession #45 – RAP all day. Ott gets two touches. Possession ends with Battle driving 1 on 3. O’Brien calls it ‘a wild shot in the lane’. Lavin calls it a 9.8 out of 10 as far as degree of difficulty. Kebler is not even one of the 3 Spartans defending Talor’s drive. EPC – 2. CT – 18. SCU – :29.

Possession #46 – RAP. Ott gets a touch and get this. When he does, he passes it to Battle, who is posting up Kebler (about 15 feet from the hoop, not an entry pass). Just interesting to me that our center is feeding a posted up point guard. Frazier eventually gets the ball this time with the clock winding down. He penetrates and forces a wild shot that has no chance of going in, but it comes after the shot clock buzzer anyway. Turnover #9. EPC – 2. CT – 19. SCU – :35.

Possession #47 (Transition) - We’ll call this transition just because of how quick the shot is. After a block by David Jackson, Battle brings the ball up the court and immediately finds Babb open in the far corner. He’s got some daylight to put up the shot, but I don’t think Babb has earned the right to shoot whenever he wants. Then again, that might have been the best shot we could have gotten all possession. He misses. EPC – 2. CT – 19. SCU – :04.

Possession #48 - Battle races down the court after a missed free throw and uses his theatrics to draw a foul on Kebler. Another weak inbounds set results in Brooks catching it in the backcourt. Battle sets up the offense and somehow Lucas is on Brooks again. Brooks posts up, DJ feeds him, and Brooks gets an easy two points. First high-low action from PSU in the game. Too bad MSU already went on a 13-0 run. EPC – 3. CT – 19. SCU – :11.

Possession #49 – Battle forces the issue again after a miss. He penetrates and kicks to Babb, who swings it to DJ. MSU hasn’t gotten back on defense, and DJ puts up an open 3. Unfortunately, DJ’s shot is a brick. Steve Lavin called the shot ‘a grenade’. O’Brien says, “We’ve seen a bunch of those today.” EPC – 3. CT – 19. SCU – :08.

Possession #50 - Battle comes down the court and Ed calls a play. I swear, all that happens is Battle comes off a weak ball screen by DJ to advance from the wing to the top of the key. All four players are now watching Battle dribble the ball. Talor then tries a very weak attempt at a dribble weave with Babb. As Babb passes the ball back, Kebler knocks it away. Good defense by Kebler, but I think I could have deflected the incredibly weak pass. PSU inbounds the ball and Talor roams around the arc with DJ attempting some slip screens. Battle eventually drives past Kebler, who was screened, and makes a tough floater in the lane. EPC – 3. CT – 19. SCU – :30.

Possession #51 – RAP for 20 seconds. Battle then splits a double team (DJ set up for another ball screen) and gets fouled by either Kebler or Green. The inbounds set is just a lob into Andrew Jones at the wing. More RAP for 20 seconds after the reset. Babb drives and pulls up for a 15-footer from the corner. Brick. Not a good shot. EPC – 3. CT – 20. SCU – :22/:23.

Possession #52 - After some more 2 man game with Battle, Jackson slips to the basket and posts up. Battle swings it to Babb on the wing, but he doesn’t drop it in to DJ. It looks like PSU is making a concerted effort to get it inside here, but I really don’t know why Babb doesn’t make this entry pass. DJ looks to have Raymar Morgan sealed. Babb instead throws it to Drew Jones at the foul line, who has a much worse angle on the pass to DJ. He kicks it back out to Babb, who then forces a pass to Jackson, who is clearly no longer open. The refs call it off of PSU. Questionable call, but Ed doesn’t argue despite it happening right in front of his face. Turnover #10. EPC – 3. CT – 21. SCU – :17.

Possession #53 - Desperation mode. There’s two minutes left with a 12 point deficit. Battle recklessly drives into the lane and is fouled. He makes 1 of 2 at the line. EPC – 3. CT – 21. SCU – :08.

Possession #54 – Battle, after getting abused on defense by Lucas, comes right down the court and nails a pull up 3. EPC – 3. CT – 21. SCU – :04.

Possession #55 – Highberger is in. He brings the ball up the court and gets mauled from behind by Derrick Nix. Officials don’t call the foul and the ball goes out of bounds off PSU. Turnover #11. EPC – 3. CT – 21. SCU – :07.

Possession #56 - Babb misses a 3. I got tired of waiting for the ESPN360 feed, but I have to assume there were no Center Touches or Entry Passes.

FINAL COUNT:

• Just 3 total entry passes for the entire game from Penn State. It was really more like 2, but I was generous and counted Battle finding a wide open Andrew Jones as one. Jeff Brooks posted up twice when he was guarded by Kalin Lucas. That is the only time Penn State fed the ball to the low block.
• Just 21 touches by Andrew Ott and Andrew Jones combined, 13 of which came out past the 3 point line. They did attempt to post up throughout the game, but it was seldom. Even when they did, they never seriously called for the ball and it looked like they were just going through the motions. 56 possessions, 8 touches inside the 3 point line. We’re playing 4 on 5.
• 22 times PSU ran the shot clock to under :10. I’m not going to figure out the success rate because it’s probably half decent, considering Battle hit some ridiculous shots.

Now, for everyone wondering why I haven’t been blogging, try being motivated to do so when watching a team whose offensive gameplan is as frustrating as this. This is all we’ve seen the last month. It’s a miracle that we’re even in games. Talor Battle is phenomenal in that regard. With the same personnel coming back next year, how can we expect things to change?

There’s still opportunities that the schedule ratings could improve. Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, Davidson and UNC-Wilmington all look like they will make some noise in their respective conferences. But you can also basically stick a fork in Penn (who already fired their coach), American, UMBC, and Gardner-Webb.  In the end, though, does it really even matter? The bottom line is this young Penn State team is about to embark on an 18 game conference season. Their preparation was the 317th toughest schedule, and they did not fare well against it.

The NCAA tournament is a long ways away for this team. A road win against ACC bottom-feeder Virginia isn’t going to impress anyone. The Nits have set themselves up for another 11 win conference season if they want to get in. They were unable to do it last year, and it’s highly unlikely they don’t get it this year.

Have any questions heading into this season been answered? There are no consistent scoring options after Battle. As much as we all love Talor, it’s foolish to think he’s going to score 20 points in every Big Ten game. When he has a bad outing, which I’m sure will happen at least a few times, will PSU get run out of the gym or will they still be able to stay competitive? Time will tell.

David Jackson has been the best shooter on the team in terms of shooting percentages, but he continues to not be involved (only 15.2% possessions used). He rarely takes more than 5 shots a game, and it’s unlikely that since conference season is here, things will change. DJ is a great defender and a solid role player. But on a team so desperate for somebody to step up, role players aren’t going to win games.

I’ve been pretty disappointed in Chris Babb. I didn’t think he’d be as streaky of a shooter as he is. He shot his way out of the starting lineup in the Charleston Classic. But in fairness to Chris, he’s still an underclassmen and never proved to be a consistent scorer. My expectations for him were probably a little high. But Penn State’s offense needs him to hit the open jumper when he gets a clean look. He started sinking some shots the last two games, so maybe he can carry that over to conference play. Another thing I’ll say for Chris is he still contributes even if his shot is off. He’s averaging 4 boards in 23 minutes, and I’m impressed with how much he has improved defensively.

Andrew Jones, on the other hand, probably is the biggest disappointment. I’m starting to wonder if he’s maxed out. I thought last year he was ignored on offense, but he’s not using many more possessions this year (15.2% compared to 13.9% ). He struggled early in the year just establishing post position. He’s still scoring his garbage points that are set up by Battle or him grabbing an offensive rebound. But PSU needs Drew to be able to score his own points , and he hasn’t been able to do that. Will he ever?

Jeff Brooks was a pleasant surprise in November, but he has since struggled. Jeff can score with his back to the basket, but he still insists on floating around the perimeter. PSU needs him to touch the ball on the low block with regularity. His length and athleticism is tough to guard, but he needs to stay inside. It’s mind-boggling that with Jeff’s size (6’8″), he has registered 6 games with just 1 rebound or less.

Tim Frazier is going to be really good, but he’s going through the learning curve every freshman guard faces. He’s going to be inconsistent. It has to be expected from the true freshman. I like his defense and athleticism, but we’ll see how he handles Minnesota’s press. Broadcasters have exposed his inability to drive with his left, so you can be sure all the coaches in the league have noticed. His jumper has been a pleasant surprise, even so much that I would like to see him shoot more.

And then there’s Bill Edwards. The late signing has been an awesome surprise. He’s a smooth, versatile playmaker with above average passing and balling handling skills. The coaching staff has given him a lot of freedom on the court. He can shoot the 3, drive the lane, and post up. If there’s anyone who will step up into that 2nd scorers’ role, I’d bet it will be Bill. But he’s still a true freshmen and makes his fair share of bad plays (29.7% TO%). I never feel comfortable relying on a true freshman to be consistent. Especially one who hasn’t even played a game yet at 100%. He’s still hobbled by that knee injury, and I’m curious if Bill will be able to keep up with the athletes in this conference.

I’m more optimistic about the defense this year, however. Before the season, I thought PSU had the potential to put out their best defensive team in years. That wasn’t the case early on, as Sacred Heart and UNC-Wilmington tore the Lions up. But they’ve guarded much better since then, even against decent clubs like Virginia, Va Tech, and Temple. There are much better offensive teams in the conference than those 3 clubs, though, so we’ll see how improved the defense really is. Just because they could be PSU’s best doesn’t mean they’ll be elite. I’m hoping PSU could register a sub 1.0 PPP defense in conference play this year for the first time in DeChellis’ era, but I don’t think they will be at the point to win games on defense.

So, as you can probably tell, I’m not really optimistic as we enter the Big Ten campaign. Too many questions have been left unanswered and too much has been the same. The offense is in disarray. However, I certainly wasn’t optimistic last year and the team went on to post a winning conference record for the first time since 1996…Can Talor Battle really do everything?

Many people will read that sentence and laugh uncontrollably. Most people’s reactions will be something along the lines of this:

How can a program who hasn’t been to the NCAA in 8 seasons be a basketball school? You do realize that last year was just the NIT right? Besides, it was a one-hit wonder of a season. Penn State will go back to its usual suckiness.

Or will they? That has yet to be seen, but that’s not the point of this post. I’m talking about the culture of Penn State basketball off the hardwood.

When Ed DeChellis was hired all the way back in April 2003, he didn’t really talk about rebuilding in his opening press conference. He said he was focusing on getting the program as healthy as possible. And while his coaching record doesn’t say it, that mission has been accomplished.

Before ED arrived, there was absolutely no support for the program from the Athletic Department. All the game films were on VHS, and there was no video coordinator to edit them. There was no strength and conditioning coach. Director of Basketball Operations? There wasn’t one of those, either. A private plane for recruiting? Hah, that’s a good one. The school appeared to be more apathetic about the program than our youth generation is about politics. Without these valuable positions, our coaches had to allocate more time to completing every day non-basketball tasks. Keep in mind, this is back during the time where assistant coaches had to practice with the team because too many players were transferring out of the program. How they found time to recruit is beyond me. Now maybe you can understand a little why it took 6 seasons to just get to the NIT.

There’s been a common belief amongst Penn Staters about the basketball program ever since I’ve been alive, it seems.  All PSU needed to do was suck it up and pay a big-name coach, and then Penn State basketball would become relevant. It sounded so simple. I was only 14 when DeChellis was hired, so I can’t act like I knew what the culture of college basketball was like back then. But what big-name coach would want to come to PSU at that time (especially when you saw the depleted roster)? Yeah, the right price could bring in some big names, but if they were truly ‘big-name coaches’, wouldn’t they be able to get that money somewhere else? There were rumors that when Tim Floyd was interviewed for the job, he demanded an 8-year, guaranteed contract. I’d say that Tim was a smart man if those rumors were true.

So Ed DeChellis was hired, and the apathetic fan base rolled their eyes. Another ‘hire from within’ a losing program. But looking back now, it was absolutely the right hire. We needed a coach who had the necessary passion for the school to persevere through those frustrating times, when the playing field was more than uneven. It was actually more like Mt. Everest. What big name coach would have the patience to deal with the situation at PSU? Probably no one. It would be an insult to any of those type of coaches to have to fly commercial on recruiting trips. They would just collect their paycheck and move on to a much more manageable position at another school who had the resources available to win.

But DeChellis persevered and the AD was patient and provided the resources the program needed. Today, Penn State basketball is as healthy as it has ever been. The renovated facilities at the BJC are as nice as they come. We have a DOBO, a S&C coach, a marketing director, and a Video Coordinator. Our Digital Media has been reviewed as the best in the Big Ten. All of these resources are necessary today to compete with the other juggernauts of major college basketball. DeChellis and his staff now have a program to showcase when he’s out recruiting, and it’s starting to pay benefits.

Now a lot of this is speculation. I don’t know who all is responsible for this transformation. There were probably many other factors that contributed to the advancement of the program. There’s no doubt Rene Portland and Title IX had an effect on holding the program back, and finding the money for all of this I’m sure was no cakewalk. But all I know is, Ed DeChellis arrived and eventually, a program was built. For that, I have an undying respect for him. Especially since it was built the right way, and he’s as classy a coach as there is in college basketball.

Now, it’s time to show some success on the court. There are no excuses anymore. I’m not sold if DeChellis can do that yet or not. I don’t like how he works his player rotations and how much freedom he gives his players. His teams’ defense also have left a lot to be desired. I still have doubts whether or not he can coach this team to where they need to go. But now he can just focus on coaching and recruiting, just like all of his colleagues in the business. It’s time to prove to us that we can dismiss those first 5 seasons and his significantly poor Big Ten record.

But even if DeChellis and PSU have to part ways in the future, there’s no doubt in my mind that PSU will be able to hire  a proven coach. Winning is now possible at Penn State, and we have DeChellis to thank for that. You don’t have to like the guy, but he should be respected by all in the PSU family. Because of his dedication and passion for our beloved school, we’ll get to find out over the next decade if PSU really is a ‘sleeping giant’ in college basketball.