Roughly a half hour after legendary Purdue big man Zach Edey went ninth overall to Memphis in the 2024 Draft, Penn State basketball landed a commitment from a 7-footer.
On Wednesday night, Justin Houser, a Class of 2025 center from the Phelps School in Malvern, Pennsylvania, announced his commitment to Penn State.
Dreams to Reality #committed #WeAre pic.twitter.com/4hYDwcuS2z
— Justin Houser (@JustinHouser24) June 27, 2024
Houser is the first commit of the 2025 cycle for coach Mike Rhoades and company. He had been on the program’s radar for more than, having been offered last June, and was coming off an unofficial visit when he announced his commitment. He also had offers from Bryant, Delaware, Lafayette, Mount St. Mary’s, NJIT, St. Joe’s and Temple.
After his Penn State offer, Houser spoke highly of Rhoades— who at that point was months removed from coming to PSU from VCU— and his staff in an interview with PennLive.
“They welcomed me very nicely,” Houser said. “I really liked their new style of play. They talked a lot about how they want a big who’s a positionless player, who can shoot the three, put the ball on the floor and take it inside.”
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“As a player I see myself like that, so I really liked them a lot.”
Houser told PennLive he hopes to become a “positionless player.”
“I can take the ball inside whenever I want, and also play outside like a guard when it’s needed too,” he said.
Before Houser can arrive at Penn State, the team will play its second season of the Rhoades era.
The goal this season is to make it to the NCAA Tournament, which Penn State’s less than two years removed from accomplishing.
