Penn State basketball: A rare NCAA bid hangs in the balance as Lions open B1G Tournament play

It’s possible that Penn State already has earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament. But Micah Shrewsberry and his Nittany Lions can’t afford to think that way.

A program with only 4 Tournament appearances in the past 57 years and none since 2011 doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt.

A couple wins by Michigan (17-14, 11-9) in the Big Ten Tournament might force the Selection Committee to find a spot for the Wolverines. It’s hard to reject a team that has made 5 straight Sweet 16s. Penn State has made exactly 1 NCAA Sweet 16 since 1955.

The Lions have made only 5 Tournaments in that span, and haven’t won a game in the Big Dance since the 2001 team took out Providence and North Carolina to reach the Sweet 16. The most recent trip to the real postseason resulted in an opening-round loss to Temple in 2011.

So, while Sunday’s last-second win over No. 21 Maryland to cap the regular season might keep the Lions on the right side of the bubble regardless, a 20th win Thursday night (6:30 ET, BTN) would allow Jalen Pickett and company to breathe much easier this coming Sunday as the selection show airs on ESPN.

The No. 10-seed Lions (19-12, 10-10) face No. 7-seed Illinois (20-11, 11-9), a squad they beat by 15 in Champaign and by 12 at home roughly a month ago. And Penn State is playing better ball now than heading into either of those 2 games. It had lost 2 straight before waxing the then-No. 17 Illini 74-59 on Dec. 10. It had lost 4 straight before dumping them 93-81 on Valentine’s Day.

Now, the Lions face Brad Underwood’s team having won 5 of 6 to even their Big Ten record. It should be 6 straight wins, but Penn State blew a 19-point second-half lead 2 Sundays ago in a 59-56 loss to Rutgers.

Shrewsberry likes what he’s seeing from his senior-laden squad, especially after a big rally and last-second tip-in by Camren Wynter allowed the Lions to sink the Terrapins 65-64 on Senior Day at the Bryce Jordan Center.

“We’re playing our best ball right now,” the Lions’ 2nd-year coach said. “And that is what we’ve been aiming for all season. Now, let’s go have fun. Let’s enjoy what we’re doing. Let’s enjoy playing together. This whole week is going to be a circus in Chicago, because anybody can beat anybody on any night. So you get rested, you get healthy and you go play you’re best basketball.”

Chaos around the country?

Chicago won’t be the only city hosting a circus disguised as a conference tournament this week. Some supposedly settled spots in the Field of 68 might evaporate should certain results manifest. What if Villanova (17-15 after smashing Georgetown in its Big East Tournament opener) runs the table and takes its conference’s automatic bid? North Carolina (19-12), like fellow blueblood Michigan, is making a late push to make the field. The Tar Heels face No. 13 Virginia at 7 p.m. ET tonight in the ACC quarterfinals. Clemson (22-9 with a 2-OT win over Penn State in November) plays NC State in a key late game tonight. As of late Wednesday night, ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi had the Tigers among the next 4 out and the Wolfpack among the last 4 byes.

Lunardi has Penn State among the last 4 in, and shows the Lions paired with Oklahoma State in an 11-seed play-in game. That’s a tenuous spot, especially for a team that won’t get much benefit of the doubt.

Seth Lundy, fellow seniors are key

Seth Lundy, often the tallest player on the court for the Lions at 6-6, has missed his past 17 3-point attempts at the BJC, a cold spell spanning 2 ½ home games. He went 0-for-11 from deep in the brutal loss to Rutgers, and 0-for-4 as the Lions rallied to beat Maryland.

But Lundy, like the team in general, is capable of getting hot and staying hot for long stretches.

In a 10-game stretch from Jan. 11 (7-of-12 vs. Indiana) to Feb. 14 (3-of-6 vs. Illinois), Lundy shot 37-of-72 on 3s. For the non-math majors, that’s better than 50 percent. Even after the late-season brick work, he still shoots better than 40 percent (40.9%) from behind the arc. As do teammates Andrew Funk (40.6%) and Wynter (41.3%). Pickett — in addition to leading the team in points, rebounds, assists and steals — shoots 39.3% from deep.

Myles Dread, like Lundy a holdover from the Pat Chambers days now playing for a 3rd head coach during his time at PSU, comes off the bench as a hard-nosed 6th man.

Overall, the Lions shoot 38.9% on 3-pointers, which ranks 2nd in the conference (Michigan State 40.1%) and 11th in the country. When the ball moves and open looks emerge, Penn State can play with most anyone. It is 2-2 vs. Top 25 teams this season, with the 2 losses coming against Purdue, which was ranked No. 1 at the time of each game.

Those 5 are all seniors, a kind of mid-major all-star team that Shrewsberry has patched together and coached into a cohesive unit. In the final minutes against Maryland, he was willing to live and die with the group.

“I went with that group. … I wasn’t subbing. I was going to let those dudes play the rest of the game. If we would have gone 7 overtimes, they would have stayed in the entire time. … They’re learning each other. They’re figuring each other out. … I feel like we’re peaking. I feel like we’re playing our best basketball right now, which is what you want to do. … Our guys feel good about themselves. They feel good about how they’re playing.”

Funk (Bucknell) and Wynter (Drexel) are transfers playing their 1st and only season at Penn State. Pickett (Siena), recently named a 2nd-team All-American by The Sporting News, is in his 2nd and final year as a Lion. Of the core group, only Lundy has even the option to return; the rest are already super seniors who have played 4 full seasons plus the Covid year. Lundy was honored on Senior Day, so there’s a good chance he’ll be moving on after this season as well.

After this season, Penn State’s near-term prospects aren’t great. Shrewsberry probably isn’t going to find players of Pickett’s talent in the portal year after year. Building the program via recruiting will take a few more cycles and successes on the trail.

But these Lions have the now. It’ll make the lift easier for the next generation if they can continue to show the way — this week, and for a least a couple games in the NCAA Tournament. It’s been too long since Penn State and its fans have known what that looks like.

Luke Glusco

Luke Glusco is a Penn State graduate and veteran journalist. He covers Penn State and occasionally writes about other Big Ten programs and topics. He also serves as the primary copy editor for Saturday Tradition.