In Monday’s release of the Associated Press Top 25 Teams, Penn State (PSU) earned four points, making it the de facto 40th-ranked team in the country.
This is the first time in nearly two years the Nittany Lions have earned votes, the last time being in March of 2023.
PSU garnered one vote on Monday’s poll, slotting it in the 22nd position. The vote follows Penn State’s 86-64 drubbing of Virginia Tech Friday night.
In that game, Ace Baldwin Jr. led the way with a 19-point double-double, followed by Zach Hicks’ 19 and season-high five 3’s.
Zach Hicks is having a career year:
– 15.5 ppg (career-high)
– 48.3 3P% (career-high)
– 1/24 players nationally with 14 made 3s on 48.3 percent shooting
– PSU is nearly 15 point better per 100 with him on the floor based of his box score production pic.twitter.com/R5gSAQhMLp— Brennan Valladares (@Valladares7B) November 19, 2024
Overall, Penn State is 4-0 in Mike Rhoades’ second season. They have cleared 100 points twice and have the largest point differential in the Big Ten (35.8).
Per KenPom‘s efficiency rankings, PSU has the 43rd-best offense and 28th-best when adjusting for opponent quality. It has the 32nd-highest net rating according to the site as well.
So far, the Nittany Lions defense has fueled their undefeated start. They hold the first and second positions nationally in steals per game (15.3) and total steals (61), turning their opponents over 21.5 times a night (second in the country). Opponents are posting a 44.2 percent effective field goal rate (accounting for the fact the 3s are worth more than 2s) against Rhoades’ defensive unit, ranking PSU in the 83rd percentile.
Penn State is set to host Purdue Fort Wayne on Wednesday in the Bryce Jordan Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be streaming on B1G+.
