2008 Penn State Basketball Predictions & Season Preview
Written October 14, 2008 by Luke Knight
It is hard not to feel a little sorry for the Nittany Lions after last season. They lost their leading scorer, but responded with their best Big Ten finish in seven seasons going 7-11 and were poised to snag an NIT berth despite concluding the regular season with a starting lineup of four freshmen and a JuCo transfer. Then the Nittany Lions lost in the first round of the Big Ten tournament to Illinois, finished the season 15-16 and missed out on the postseason for the 6th time in seven seasons. One thing the injury-ridden season last year did was allow Penn State to develop a number of young players. Now the Nittany Lions return five of their top six scorers, including co-MVPs Talor Battle and Jamelle Cornley. Penn State also returns four of their top five rebounders this season. This should translate to some success to a Nittany Lion team hungry to move up in the college basketball world. The Nittany Lions are +25000 odds to win an NCAA Championship at BetUS so keep an eye on them as they look to make some noise this season by beating the college basketball odds more often than not..
Jamelle Cornley, the senior forward, is the leader of the frontcourt and sets the tone for Penn State. Cornley is only 6’5” but he will bang with anyone, any size. Cornley’s health is often at issue, but he plays through it. Cornley is only the 16th Nittany Lion to surpass 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his career. He averaged 12.1 points and 6.0 rebounds last season, and those numbers should rise in his senior season as long as he stays healthy. The Nittany Lions return three sophomore forwards in Andrew Jones, Jeff Brooks, and David Jackson. Jones has added quite a bit of beef since arriving on campus and looks to fill a bigger role. Jackson posted the first double-double of his career in the regular season finale last year, which was a Penn State upset over Indiana. Penn State lacks size up front, but they have plenty of depth and toughness.
Talor Battle is the Penn State upcoming star. He stepped up and averaged 10.2 points, when Geary Claxton, the team’s leading scorer got hurt. Battle is athletic and quick enough to create his own shots off the dribble, plus he led the team in assists last year with 99. Penn State also has senior Danny Morrissey returning. Morrissey was 12th in the Big Ten as a junior with 58 3-pointers. Stanley Pringle is a senior combo guard with a wicked cross-over dribble modeled after that of Allen Iverson. He is extremely quick, which makes him useful at both ends of the court. Pringle was charged in April with committing a lewd act in Penn State’s library, but should still be a potential starter. Chris Babb is an incoming freshman who scored 1,125 points as a senior in high school and could be an impact player.
Final Analysis
Penn State has been on-the-verge of a breakout season for a couple years now. The players have bought into Ed DeChellis’s program. They play hard and they have proven that they are capable of pulling an upset. They have certainly dealt with their share of bad luck as last season proved, but there is a hopeful atmosphere Happy Valley. We have this team finishing in the bottom to middle of the pack in the Big Ten, where BetUS has them at +2000 odds at capturing the Big Ten Conference. An NCAA bid is not likely, but they will have the opportunity again this year to grab an NIT berth.
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