I mean, did you see that arena last night? The place was 1/2 empty. Maybe Penn State though it was a home game since it looked a lot like the BJC on any given night.

Been a PSU basketball fan for a while now but I didn’t have the chance to watch this group play yet. Soooo refreshing to see some dribble-drive out off PSU guards in the early going, as that’s been non existent in the recent past. I like this team’s ability to shoot over the defense if it starts to take away driving lanes as well. That being said, I think this team has even less inside presence than in the days of AJ-Jan-Milos-[that lurpy Kobe look-alike, what was his name]-Geary. Looks like the team is starting to resemble Eddie-ball. Fun to watch, but I question whether or not it can get the job done against the bruisers of the BigTen.

I enjoyed the game, although it looked like they were trying to give it away at the end. I liked the tempo Battle and Pringle were setting, however they are a bit out of control and Battle forced a few shots. They are both very talented, however have a lot to learn.

Morrissey is lights out and they need to get him the ball coming off screens. He’s the type of guy who can bring you back from a deficit or put the game away when he shoots in rhythm.

We are in trouble if we face another guy like Lawal. We had no answer for him and I’m afraid that anytime we play a team with a big man that dominant, we are in for a long night if we aren’t shooting the ball well.

For a team like Penn State, there is no reason this team shouldn’t be shooting at least 70% from the line. Free throws can be the ultimate equalizer so long as guys execute. Now maybe it was the pressure that caused them to miss all those free throws at the end…but it’s going to cost them a game if they can’t sink them. By the way, if you’ve ever played basketball at any competitive level, you would know that free throws are called “free” for a reason and the “charity stripe” means what it sounds like. Asking a scholarship athlete to make 7 out of 10 free throws is not a monumental task.

As for Ed DeChellis someone tell him to shave that tuft of hair he has on the crown of his head….WTF? Are those supposed to be bangs?

Since I don’t get the big ten, this was one of the four times all year I’ll get to watch them. But I liked what I saw. As others have said, the front court is brutal, but we’ve got a good, gritty, disciplined, and talented front court.

I worry a little that this team can lose games it shouldn’t because it depends too much on outside shooting, but we’ll have to see how often that happens.

Personally, my favorite kinds of hoops squads run the floor, hustle and play good, disciplined defense. We need Jones to grow up fast, but our guards are good AND they have heart. They way the rebound from the backcourt is impressive and promising.

I feel a little bit like I’m holding my breath until someone gets injured, but for now, we look like a legit contender in the big ten.

Also, I loved how effusive John Saunders was in his praise of the Nits. I expect all bball announcers to underestimate us; he didn’t.

The interior D wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Although Jones slipped up a couple times, there were a lot of other times when he had good position on Luwal, and the dude would just hit a tough fadaway bank shot anyway. The Big 10 doesn’t have that many guys who can make that kind of shot (I’d like to see Goran Suton try). PSU adjusted for this and started bringing double teams, which were mostly effective because of our guards’ quick hands.

The part of the game when PSU switched to a zone was a disaster, as GT just lit us up from downtown. When we played man with pressure on the guards, they could not hit a thing from that range.

The real concern I have was PSU giving up easy points by getting beat down the floor by GT’s forwards. The jackets’ bigs probably run better than most teams we will see, but fatigue was probably a factor for us. The point is that PSU had some decent defensive sets in the half court. Luwal did what he wanted to even when guarded well.

However, double-teaming will be harder to get away with vs a team with better shooters. Still, this game was a good tune-up for Big Ten play. The Lions rebound with tenacity and it doesn’t look like offense will be a problem this year.

It might not be the coaching of the FTs, as much as it is the amount of time/attention given to it in practice.

In past years, (I hope) the focus was likely less on making FTs and more on playing proper defense, avoiding screens at one end while making solid screens at the other, finding openings and getting better shots. I’m sure this list could continue with lack of skill that Ed has dealt with in the past.

Hopefully now we can start to believe that we don’t need as much focus on the basics, and see that hey – being able to hit these late free throws will actually be important to us this season.

it’s nice to see the lions win on NATIONAL tv.