Nittany Sports Now has composed a ranking of their top ten Penn State men’s basketball players of all-time.
Making this list felt like I was “splitting hairs” and I had to leave some guys out, but here we go.
I had to start out with a tie at No. 10.
#10 Titus Ivory & Jarrett Stephens
I just couldn’t leave either one of these men off this list. Both former standouts played their entire collegiate careers in State College.
Ivory (1996-2001) had career averages of 10.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game. He most notably helped lead Penn State’s historic, Cinderella run in the 2001 NCAA Tournament when the Nittany Lions advanced to the Sweet Sixteen after defeating No. 2 seed North Carolina, 82-74, where Ivory scored 21 points. He also helped lead Penn State to two NIT Final Fours in Madison Square Garden in 1998 and 2000.
Stephens (1996-2000) averaged a solid 11.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game while his shooting at 59% from the floor puts him at No. 2 all-time in PSU’s record books. He is also currently No. 2 all-time in win-shares per 40 minutes at (.189), No. 4 in win shares at (13.2) and No. 9 in made field goals with (539). He was Penn State’s first-ever consensus first-team All-Big Ten Selection. Stephens was also part of the two Nittany Lion teams that made it to the NIT Final Four in Madison Square Garden in 1998 and 2000.
#9 Pete Lisicky
Lisicky (1994-1998) played all four years in Happy Valley and is still No. 1 all-time at Penn State in three-point field goal shooting percentage at 40% and No. 2 all-time in three-point shots made at 332. He is also currently No. 7 all-time in scoring with 1,605 points. Lisicky was All-Big Ten in ’96, ’97 and ’98. Pistol Pete finished his PSU career averaging 13.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He helped lead the Nittany Lions to three postseason appearances by making the NCAA Tournament in 1996 as a No. 5 seed and to the NIT Final Four in 1995 and 1998.
#8 Calvin Booth
Calvin Booth also played his entire collegiate career for the Blue & White (1995-1999). The human fly swatter is still No. 1 on the all-time blocks list with 428 and No. 1 in blocks per game at 3.8. His career averages are 11.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 51% from the field which ranks him at No. 6 all-time. Booth was a freshman when Penn State entered the 1996 NCAA Tournament as a No. 5 seed and was upset in the first round by the No. 12 seed Arkansas Razorbacks by a score of 86-80. Booth went onto to play 10 seasons in the NBA.
#7 Tim Frazier
Frazier played for Penn State from 2009-2014 and his career averages were 11.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He is currently No. 1 all-time in total assists (641), No. 4 in assists per game (4.7), No. 4 in made free throws (453), No. 4 in free throw shooting percentage (.774), No. 5 in total steals (196), No. 7 in steals per game (1.5) and No. 10 in total points scored (1,543). In 2011, Frazier helped guide the Nittany Lions to the NCAA Tournament as a No. 10 seed where they loss to Temple on a last-second buzzer-beater, 66-64. Frazier registered 15 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists in the defeat. Frazier went on to play nine seasons in the NBA.
#6 Yanic Konan Niederhauser
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Niederhauser made school history by becoming the first Penn State men’s basketball player ever to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft. The Los Angeles Clippers selected him at No. 30 overall. Niederhauser, however, only played one season with Penn State and didn’t make any postseason appearances in 2024-2025. He did end up averaging 12.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and a Big Ten-leading 2.3 blocks per game. The 7-foot center also shot a team-high 61.1% from the field.
#5 Jalen Pickett
After playing at Siena for his first three collegiate seasons, Pickett came to State College eligible for two more seasons (2021-2023). He didn’t disappoint as his PSU career averages are 15.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and his 5.6 assists per game puts him at No. 2 all-time in the Penn State record books. As a team, Pickett helped lead the Nittany Lions to their first NCAA Tournament win since 2001 by defeating Texas A&M in the first round before falling to Texas in the Round of 32. He was selected in the second round of the 2023 NBA Draft at pick No. 32 by the Denver Nuggets.
#4 Lamar Stevens
Stevens (2016-2020) spent four impactful seasons in State College. He is currently No. 1 on the all-time list in total field goals made (801), No. 2 in made free throws (519), No. 2 in total points scored (2,207), No. 2 in defensive rebounds (675), No. 3 in total minutes played (4,351), No. 5 in blocks (127) and No. 8 in offensive rebounds (200). In 2018, Stevens led the Nittany Lions to winning the NIT Championship. During the 2019-2020 season, he also helped Penn State to a national ranking at No. 20 before COVID-19 canceled all the postseason tournaments.
#3 Joe Crispin
Joe Crispin was a four-year starter (1997-2001) and a 2001 captain for Penn State, who starred for the Nittany Lions during one of the program’s best periods as the team made three postseason appearances during his career, including trips to the 2001 NCAA Sweet 16, the 1998 NIT Championship Game and the 2000 NIT Final Four. He is still No. 1 in the PSU record books for free throw shooting percentage (.885), No. 3 in three-point shooting percentage (.348), No. 4 in total points scored (1,986), No. 4 in true shooting percentage (.536), No. 4 in three-point field goals made (308), No. 5 in total assists (485) and No. 5 in total minutes played (4,063).
#2 Talor Battle
Battle also played at Penn State for his entire collegiate career (2007-2011). He is currently No. 1 on the all-time scoring list with 2,213 points. The four-year starter is one of the few players in college basketball history to record over 2,000 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists in their career. Battle led the Nittany Lions to their first-ever NIT Championship Title in 2009 and to the 2011 NCAA Tournament when the Nittany Lions secured a No. 10 seed in the West Region and ultimately lost to No. 7 Temple 66-64 on a last-second buzzer-beater. Battle is also No. 1 all-time in minutes played (4,799), No. 1 in win shares (16.4) and No. 4 in total assists (517).
#1 Jesse Arnelle
Arnelle was a Nittany Lion from 1951-1955. He was a standout power forward and the program’s only first-team All-American. He led the Nittany Lions to their only NCAA Final Four appearance in 1954 and finished his career with 2,138 points, which puts him at No. 3 all-time in the record books. In an era when there was no three-point line, Arnelle still currently ranks at No. 1 in points per game (21.0), No. 1 in total rebounds (1,238), No. 1 in rebounds per game (12.1), No. 1 in made free throws (662), No. 1 in free throw attempts (992) and No. 2 in made field goals (738). Arnelle’s era also played at least ten less games in a season than teams do today. Arnelle died on October 21, 2020 at the age of 86.
Some players that I was forced to leave out of the top ten were players like John Amaechi, Ace Baldwin Jr., Seth Lundy, Gyasi Cline-Heard, Dan Earl, D.J. Newbill, Bob Weiss, Josh Reaves, Shep Garner and Mike Watkins.
