One simple phrase has defined this Penn State basketball season: late-game execution.
In eight of PSU’s 13 losses, it has been within four points or even had the lead in the final two minutes. Poor shot selection, unforced errors, and timeouts seemingly banked away for the next game have turned the 2024-25 season on its head for the Nittany Lions. So, as is common in sports, a scapegoat “must” be chosen, and right now, Mike Rhoades is the one being offered up.
After Penn State’s seventh straight loss to No. 17 seed Washington on Saturday, fans took to X (formerly Twitter) to share their opinions on Rhoades’ future with the team:
Pat Kraft….can’t wait around after the season. Let Rhoades go “sweat” elsewhere and get the new leader/staff In there so they can attack the portal early. Rhoades was a cute mid-major coach, he’s overwhelmed on the Power 4 level.
โ C.A.M.O (@SirShavsky) February 15, 2025
Thats it: no wins in two months and we still employ this?
โ linebacker u (@shjon35) February 15, 2025
But is Rhoades all to blame here? Is there more to this story than simply a lack of called timeouts? Let’s revisit those eight games Penn State lost and diagnose what caused this team to crumble.
WHY WON’T RHOADES USE THOSE DARN TIMEOUTS?
It’s important to first note Rhoades’ philosophy for late-game management. Something he has repeatedly stated is that he prefers to play against a retreating defense in tight games, which oftentimes leaves unused timeouts on the board.
“There’s certain teams that you become more robotic late in games, to execute,” Rhoades said during his Rec Hall media availability.
“There’s other teams you have that you can play more on the fly. I mean, right now with this group, it’s a little bit of both. You know, we’re scoring at our best with flow and with actions that are not as scripted … not as easy to scout. But then there’s got to be that balance when it’s not working … And some games then we’ll come down, we’ll call a timeout to get organized …”
In only two of those close losses did Penn State use all of its timeouts; once against Oregon (a one-point loss) and once against Michigan State (a five-point loss). Agree or disagree, attacking an unset defense is what Rhoades prefers and it shows up in the film. With the context of these games set, let’s diagnose Penn State’s late-game issues.
GAME 1: PENN STATE VS. CLEMSON NOV. 26
Time:ย 1:58
Score: 67-64 Clemson
Setting:ย A Zach Hicks 3-pointer pulled the Nittany Lions to within three. After consecutive misses by both teams, a defensive lapse left Clemson’s Viktor Lakhin wide-open under the basket for a dunk. A successful after timeout play got Ace Baldwin Jr. open for a layup but Ian Schieffelin responded. Then, after Yanic Konan Niederhuaser split a pair of free throws (71-67 Clemson), a miscommunication on the defensive glass allowed Clemson to begin icing the game at the free throw line. With 17 seconds left, Rhoades let his team attack after the made free throws, resulting in a missed Freddie Dilione V turnaround.
Timeouts left:ย two
Diagnosis:ย While Mike Rhoades opted not to use one of his last two timeouts, the decisive mishaps came outside the coach’s box.
GAME 2: PENN STATE AT RUTGERS DEC. 10
Time:ย 1:56
Score:ย 77-75 Rutgers
Setting:ย After Jeremiah Williams went 1-for-2 at the line, Baldwin Jr. hit a baseline fadeaway to bring the Nittany Lions to within two. Penn State followed the shot with a defensive stop, but Baldwin Jr. settled for another step back two with 15 seconds on the shot clock. Puff Johnson gave Penn State another chance after a steal on the rebound. However, a bobbled catch on the backdoor by Hicks allowed Ace Bailey to go coast to coast to put Rutgers up four with 50 seconds left (79-75 Rutgers). After one final stop, Rhoades called Baldwin Jr.’s number after a timeout to tie the game, but the veteran guard missed the step-back 3.
Timeouts left:ย one
Diagnosis: Baldwin Jr. settled too early in the shot clock in a one-score game, and Rhoades failed to draw up anything dynamic on the game-tying try. Poor veteran awareness and playcalling stifled the Nittany Lions on the road for their second loss of the season.
GAME 3: PENN STATE VS. INDIANA JAN. 5
Time:ย 1:43
Score:ย 73-71 Indiana
Setting:ย After an Indiana turnover, Baldwin Jr. found Hicks on a pitch back for a 3-pointer that swished. Then, Penn State forced a 10-second violation, but couldn’t take advantage of it (73-71 Indiana). Rhoades used a timeout after Nick Kern Jr. fouled Mackenzie Mgbacko, and Mgbacko made it a four-point game (75-71) at the free-throw line. After the second make, Hicks got a wide-open look to trim the deficit down to one but he misfired. Two more Indiana free throws made it a six-point game (77-71), and Rhoades held his timeout to let Baldwin Jr. race up the court for a quick 3, which missed. On the baseline-out-of-bounds play, Kern Jr. passed up Dilione for a corner 3 to give Baldwin Jr. another chance, but it didn’t fall.
Timeouts left:ย one
Diagnosis:ย An inability to get a clean look after the 10-second violation proved fatal. Possibly more so, Rhoades empowering Baldwin Jr. to be the hero might’ve cost Penn State a better look to make it a three-point game on the baseline-out-of-bounds play.
GAME 4: PENN STATE VS. OREGON JAN. 12
Time: 1:29
Score:ย 78-76 Penn State
Setting:ย Kern Jr. found his way to the basket to break the tie with Oregon. After getting a stop, Penn State had a chance to build its lead. With 17 seconds on the shot clock, though, Hicks settled for a contested turnaround that missed. Immediately after, Dilione didn’t get back in transition which led to a layup (78-78). Coming back down on offense, Dilione fired an early, unwarranted 3-pointer, which Oregon’s Jackson Shelstad turned into the game-separating pull-up (80-78).
Timeouts left:ย zero
Diagnosis:ย Rhoades wants to play within the flow of the game, but allowing Hicks to take a tough two when Penn State had the lead, time and a timeout is unreasonable. Both parties are guilty on this one, as Hicks should be more aware of time and situation as one of five seniors.
GAME 5: PENN STATE AT NO. 12 MICHIGAN STATE JAN. 15
Time: 2:04
Score: 84-76 Michigan State
Setting: After Hicks got Penn State to within three, Frankie Fidler ran off five unanswered points. The Spartan gave his team an eight-point lead on a tip-in layup after Kern Jr. got caught ball watching.
Timeouts left: zero
Diagnosis: PSU was able to get within four down the stretch, but the damage had already been done after a veteran slipup.
GAME 6: PENN STATE AT IOWA JAN 24
Time: 2:33
Score:ย 76-70 Iowa
Setting:ย A Konan Niederhauser dunk brought the Nittany Lions to within six and sparked a 7-0 run. With 36 seconds left, trailing by one, Penn State forced Iowa to take a timeout. After getting a stop, no timeout was called, and Baldwin Jr. brought the ball up the court looking to take the lead. A Spain pick-and-roll was run, which freed Baldwin up for a 3. He missed and on the offensive rebound, Hicks put up a prayer unaware of the clock or the team’s timeout situation.
Timeouts left:ย one
Diagnosis:ย Hicks’ last-second-heave wasn’t the only ill-advised shot he took all game. It’s possible that he wasn’t told what the timeout situation was, but that doesn’t excuse his lack of clock awareness. Judging by Rhoades, Baldwin Jr., and Kern Jr.’s reactions, it seemed they all knew there was more time and that they could’ve taken a timeout.
GAME 7: PENN STATE AT MICHIGAN JAN 27
Time:ย 2:08
Score: 72-67 Penn State
Setting:ย With a five-point lead, PSU forced Michigan to take a timeout at the 1:50 mark. Out of the timeout, poor ball-screen defense by both Baldwin Jr. and Kern Jr. led to a back cut for a dunk. Baldwin Jr. turned the ball over on the next play, allowing Tre Donaldson to bring Michigan within one. Not disrupting the flow (Penn State was 5-of-7 during its run), Rhoades decided to let his guys play, which resulted in Kern Jr. being blocked at the rim. Donaldson then came down and hit the game-sealing 3. Rhoades left his timeout on the board again as Baldwin Jr.’s 3 missed the mark.
Timeouts Left:ย one
Diagnosis: Rhoades should’ve used his last timeout, but his team was rolling before the 9-0 closing Michigan run. Kern Jr.’s lack of resistance in the first clip and Baldwin Jr.’s turnover were the mistakes that ignited the Wolverines down the stretch.
GAME 8: PENN STATE VS. WASHINGTON FEB. 15
Time:ย 1:17
Score:ย 72-71 Washington
Setting:ย After nearly three minutes without a score, Dilione converted on an and-one to make it a one-point game. On the next play, Baldwin Jr. fell asleep guarding DJ Davis, allowing the latter to spring open for a 3. After D’Marco Dunn trimmed the lead to two, Penn State forced a turnover after taking a timeout. A simple ball screen was run for Baldwin Jr., who missed Konan Niederhauser on the roll. With 19 seconds on the shot clock, Baldwin Jr. settled for a contested step back that missed. After a missed free throw, Penn State didn’t use its last timeout, finishing its last possession with a twirling 3 at the horn.
Timeouts left:ย one
Diagnosis:ย Rhoades and Baldwin Jr. collaborated on self-sabotaging this game. Baldwin Jr. wasn’t engaged during a pivotal defensive possession and Rhoades failed to design an easy scoring opportunity for his team. It’s hard to imagine the only other option on the second to last shot was Baldwin Jr. cosplaying as Superman. And if there ever was a time to use a timeout, it would’ve been this game.
CONCLUSION
Basketball is a game of interconnected pieces that are constantly changing. No one is perfect and players and coaches aren’t exempt from this rule.
One can argue that it is the coach’s sole responsibility to have his team prepared to win, but what happens when the players don’t execute? Or if there’s a minor drop in communication? Or if injuries pile up and throw months of work out the window?
What happens if nothing goes absolutely perfect all the time? Well, this Penn State season is an example of all those possibilities. Yes, Mike Rhoades needs to develop his offensive schemes and, yes, there are times when he should call a timeout. But, aren’t seniors supposed to be the most trusted players in crunch time?
No one individual is to blame for the results of this season, and firing the head coach probably isn’t the panacea most would hope. After all, pulling the plug on a coach that signed the program’s best recruiting class after 12 games might be a misguided decision.
While it’s hard to watch a team that started so well plummet at a meteoric rate like Penn State has, Rhoades has always had a future-oriented perspective
“It would be great if we could start right now and start building sustainable success but nothingโs guaranteed,” Rhoades said in October. “(Being) committed to winning isnโt just saying what we got to do to win [today], itโs building something thatโs going to last hopefully longer than all of us โฆ”
Winning takes time, and Mike Rhoades is willing to pay that price.
“Yeah, you worry about (roster retention and fan support), right?” Rhoades said Monday.
“Because everybody wants to be around a winner, but I also know what I signed up for — what I took over. And you know, we’ve had some great moments since I’ve been here of excitement … You go through peaks and valleys and we’re in a valley. And we just got to keep grinding this, see if we can find some success out of it.”
