STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State Basketball blew out the Binghamton Bearcats 108-66 to open the year.
Despite early foul trouble for Naismith preseason nominee Ace Baldwin, the Nittany Lions had no issues dismantling the clearly overmatched Binghamton team, crossing the 100-point mark and covering ‘doubling the spread’, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Zach Hicks led the way with 22 points on 9 of 12 from the field and 4 for 6 from three.
As a team, Penn State shot over 50% from the field and almost 42% from three. 32 free throws (making 25) was a huge difference as Binghamton was clearly outclassed athletically. Keep in mind Binghamton is a 300+ KenPom team, but it’s hard not to be pretty excited after just won game of year 2 in the Rhoades era.
“He’s a great addition to our team. Him catching lobs and constantly dunking lobs is a thing,” Zach Hicks said about newcomer Yanic Konam Neiderhauser. Yanic had 12 first-half free throws and added “It’s part of my game. If they’re not gonna foul me, I’m gonna finish (it).”
Coach Mike Rhoades added his thoughts on Neiderhauser, “Sky is the limit for this kid. He’s been playing against professionals in Europe and once he gets ahold of our (system), you ain’t seen nothing yet.” Speaking about their ‘havoc-like’ press, “We recruited guys that can guard multiple positions. Nick Kern is (probably) the best presser in the country. We can do it differently and take guys in and out of it. I’m proud of our staff for recruiting (the right guys).”
The entire roster played minus Eli Rice and Miles Goodman.
Rhoades stated “Eli wont be too long, Miles is in the protocol so he’ll be a little bit of time, but they’ll be back sooner than later.”
The Nittany Lions return to the Bryce Jordan Center Friday to welcome back former Head Coach Jim Ferry and the UMBC Retrievers at 7:00 pm on the Big Ten Network.
Listen to the Shots Gotta Fall season preview podcast, including an interview with Coach Ferry.
Evan Smith is an alum of Penn State (Marketing, Economics, 2011) and a basketball season ticket holder since 2006.
NittanyCentral is his second reporting job following the Men's Basketball program. He co-founded and co-hosts the Shots Gotta Fall - The Penn State Basketball Podcast (the premiere, the best, the only) with Steve Travis.
Smith's most proud moment covering the team was seeing the national No. 9 ranking during Pat Chambers' last year. His most embarrassing moment was spending almost a thousand dollars to travel 2,000 miles in 46 hours to watch the Nittany Lions lose to Temple in the 2011 NCAA Tournament (screw you Juan Fernandez).
NittanyCentral is his second reporting job following the Men's Basketball program. He co-founded and co-hosts the Shots Gotta Fall - The Penn State Basketball Podcast (the premiere, the best, the only) with Steve Travis.
Smith's most proud moment covering the team was seeing the national No. 9 ranking during Pat Chambers' last year. His most embarrassing moment was spending almost a thousand dollars to travel 2,000 miles in 46 hours to watch the Nittany Lions lose to Temple in the 2011 NCAA Tournament (screw you Juan Fernandez).
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Penn State Basketball Opens Season With Blowout 108-66 Victory Over Binghamton