Men's basketball will be traveling to Canada this fall for a four-game exhibition tour. Follow the team blog here for the preparations and games during the entire trip...

Check out the Lions' first practice on GOPSB.com

September 1, 2008

Game 4 vs. York

In this battle of felines the Nittany Lions have jumped all over the York Lions like somebody threw cat nip in the gym. As it has through out this tour, Penn State's defensive intensity and press has set its opponent back on its heels and York is trying to regroup. Penn State's starters (Cornley, Battle, Pringle, Brooks and Jones) have come out focused and motivated, obviously heeding the warnings extolled by the coaches that this could be a tough opponent.

A Cornley post bucket, Pringle three and a Pringle steal that leads to a dunk from Battle and the Lions are up 7-0 and turning up the pressure and tempo. Penn State's defense has York out of its comfort zone, shooting to quickly and turning the ball over. Penn State will rack up five steals in the quarter and hold York to 15% shooting as the Nittany Lions look sharp jumping screens and trapping the ball.

Cornley is having his way in the post and will lead Penn State with seven points in the first quarter, but not all in the lane as he drains a three from the elbow.

Talor Battle pushes the ball up court and leaves a nice drop for Brooks who powers down a one-handed jam over two defenders that gets the Penn State bench on its feet. Penn State goes up 13-4 on a Jones post move with 4:45 to play and Penn State begins to sub.

The intensity stays up, however, as Coach DeChellis works his troops from the bench and Penn State continues to drive the pace with pressure D and the help of a 30-second shot clock (yes, the shot clock does seem to change every game in Canada).

A Woodyard drive and 10-footer followed by a steal from the freshman and dish to Jackson for a lay-up has the Lions up 17-6.

Penn State works on its "31" defense (a 1-3-1) and Cornley's three makes it 23-7. Penn State leads 25-7 after the first quarter as the Nittany Lions shoot 61 percent from the floor and log seven assists.

Cornley drains his second three of the half looking very comfortable shooting from range and Penn State has its largest lead, 34-7, of the half. This game has turned into a track meet, but Penn State is running the 100 meters and York looks like it is wishing for a nice 1,500.

Penn State gets its three freshmen on the floor together and, though they play hard, York goes on a 6-0 run. Battle makes a couple more highlight plays in the half. First, driving the lane, drawing the foul and flipping in the bucket behind his head and off the glass for an eventual three-point play. Battle will end the half with a weaving coast-to-coast drive before leaving a nice dump pass for Jones who finishes for a Penn State halftime lead of 44-19. Battle also plays good on the ball defense in the half, shutting down one of Yorks top guards, Rieko Rauch, in one notable battle along the baseline. Battle seems to have limitless energy and looks like he can run all day, even this early in the season. Cornley has 12 at the half, but no boards (what's up, Mel?), and Penn State has cooled to 53% shooting while York has reached 20% but logged nine turnovers on Penn State's eight steals.

If any criticism is possible of a team running it's opponent off the floor by 25 at the half, it would be that Cornley still appears to be on the only Nittany Lion that posts up with authority and establishes position so an entry pass can be made. Penn State's subs are also not nearly as sharp as its starters and sometimes the court chemistry is a bit lacking, but that's expected early and will come with practice. When it does, the Lions could easily go 10 deep with contributors and little, if any, drop off in athleticism.

Second Half

Penn State seems to lack a little of the intensity and focus it started the game with, maybe to be expected holding a 25-point lead. Could be that the three story hike up and down the stairs to their locker room sapped their legs. Home court advantage.

Penn State eventually gets it going sparked by some terrific passing from Danny Morrissey. He delivers a nice feed off a pick and roll, hits Jones in the post and feeds Cornley on the break as Penn State starts rolling again.

Penn State continues to pour it on when they get a steal off the press and Jackson goes to the rim. A York player catches him from behind and blocks his shot out of bounds. A yellow clad York fan decides this is the time to heckle the Lions and shouts, "Take that! Hey, 15, welcome to Canada!"

I guess he can't see the scoreboard from his seat. At any rate, he probably wishes he didn't taunt the Lions as Penn State takes the motivation and proceeds to go on a 12-0 run. A Woodyard three makes it 66-33, Jones drops a nice feed to Oliver and DJ gets York back with a block off the glass of his own that leads to a Babb lay-up on the other end and Penn State is up 39, 72-33. "Canada has been great. Thank you very much!"

This game is over for Penn State's starters as the Nittany Lions go deep into their bench for the fourth quarter. Joonas Suotamo uses the time to make a nice move, squaring up his man at the free throw line extended and then driving past him for a nice lay-up. As Joonas pointed out later on the bus, the Nittany Lions definitely violated the "No Dunking" rules posted outside the gym.

Game 4 Impressions: Cammeron Woodyard continues to play well and show a nice smooth jumper off the dribble from about 12-15 feet. Off the top of my head, I think he has hit 5-of-6 off that move on this trip. Woodyard was probably Penn State's best freshmen on the trip, though all played pretty well, and may be headed for significant playing time this season...Penn State's press has been very aggressive on this trip going for steals and aggressively trapping. Today it was at its best and took York, which had fairly good guards, totally out of the game mentally. They were in disarray from the tip, a sort of Shock & Awe. Let's hope the Nittany Lions can continue to play that way this season...Penn State showed the maturity and senior leadership to really focus today and come out with top intensity and execution. That's not an easy thing to do after three days in a foreign country seeing the sights, having fun and beating teams by 20+ a night. Add in a noon tip and you might expect a less than sharp performance. But, Penn State's veterans have a great deal of pride and want to play at their highest level and that is carrying throughout the team.

Niagara Falls

Penn State wrapped up its Canadian tour with a visit to Niagara Falls. The whole group boarded one of the Maids of the Mist and took the 20-minute ride to the base of the American falls and then into the fury that is the Horseshoe falls at Niagara. Decked out in rain slickers and packed against the front railing of the boat, the Nittany Lions enjoyed both the power of the falls and swirling torrent of water that engulfs you on the boat as they snapped pictures and beamed. "Thank you JP," Talor Battle bellowed to the lower deck where Director of Operations Jon Perry was standing, "That was no joke. That was some cool stuff." David Jackson and Billy Oliver emerged with shirts soaked, apparently not properly utilizing the ponchos supplied, and I don't think Jeff Brooks stopped exuberantly talking the entire boat ride, in fact he still is. Good to see the players truly appreciate the experience.

After an hour to walk around the Falls park, Penn State boarded the bus and head for State College, but had one last hurdle to clear. Joonas realized upon entering Canada four days ago that he didn't have the proper paperwork and now the challenge was to get him back in the country. A customs official boarded the bus and checked all passports. He then escorted Suotamo, who was quickly followed by Perry, into the customs station to attempt to straighten the situation out. After 15 minutes Perry emerged and threw up his hands. Coaches DeChellis and Kanaskie quickly departed the bus and followed him back inside. Meanwhile, Jeff Brooks provided running commentary on the possible headlines the next day should Joonas be held in Canada. A total of 40 minutes later, the four emerge triumphant and Joonas boards the bus to a rousing ovation. Mission accomplished, the Nittany Lions are heading home. Somebody start the movie. And turn up the volume, Jeff Brooks is still talking.

Last Morning in Toronto

It's another perfect morning in Toronto with nothing but blue skies and sun. Weather has been beautiful on this trip, which bodes well for today's scheduled stop at Niagara Falls. That is, of course, after a noon tip-off vs. York, expected to be Penn State's toughest competition of the trip.

There is a very jovial spirit and a lot of energy at breakfast this morning. Lots of chatter is a good sign the players got a good nights rest and are ready to go today. It is very evident, even on this the first and very early road trip of the season, that this team really likes each other and has a great camaraderie and affection for one another. The three new freshmen have fit in perfectly and it feels like they have been here for years. It's always been one of Coach DeChellis' strengths to recruit players that fit the system and the culture he wants on his team and he and the staff have hit the mark right on this time.

Chris Babb is very comfortable and at ease and carries himself with the poise and confidence of a veteran. He is rooming with Andrew Jones on this trip and the pair look like a couple of long lost friends with instant chemistry. They have some musical skills to, at one point laying down a nice back beat in an attempt to get David Jackson to freestyle rap for the Big Ten Network cameras following the team. Jackson almost takes the bait, but then finds himself tongue tied and claims vocal problems this early in the morning. A failure to take the challenge that draws groans from the gathered entourage as his American Idol moment passes.

Billy Oliver is one of the nicest kids you'd ever want to meet. He always makes eye contact when he approaches and responds thoughtfully to conversation. Oliver drew veteran conversationalist Danny Morrissey for his first road trip roommate. Morrissey, of course, this morning grabs the financial section of the Toronto paper to follow the day's business activity. The finance major is about as plugged in to the national news and economic developments as they come at this age.

Cammeron Woodyard is a bit quieter at the moment, but equally polite and engaged with the team. He is rooming with David Jackson on this trip, whom has really opened up personality wise in his third year on the team and has been a lot of fun to be around on this trip. He and Jeff Brooks have a lively conversation at breakfast at one point involving the best defensive back in Redskins history, which Brooks asserts is Jason Taylor. Once Brooks, a great talker, leaves the room, Andrew Jones asks quizzically, "Has he ever heard of Darrell Green?"

Just incase there was any doubt, senior Jamelle Cornley responds to one of Brooks' closing remarks with, "This is my joint up in here," and then turns to Jackson who was laughing with Brooks, "DJ, why don't you run up and pack my bags?" Jackson plays along, "Ohhhh.....OK, I'll get right on that," as he calmly finishes a plate of fruit. Cornley, looking every bit the part of the elder statesmen in his square, rimless glasses, continues to prod the younger Jackson, until the pair both crack up laughing. After the 245-pound Cornley takes his leave, Babb says to Jones "That's the world's strongest man right there."

The bus ride to the arena is quiet today. The staff has clearly told the players to prepare for a tough game today and they are following the normal game day travel code of complete silence on the bus. The route to York takes the team through some of the nice, older suburbs of Toronto with big stately houses and lots of trees similar to the College Heights area of State College.

Game Time - Game #4 vs. York

The gyms keep getting bigger. This one is in a school rec complex with a six lane pool across the hall. Still only bleachers on one side of the gym, but these have about 20 rows with chair backs on the top five. The squads keep getting bigger as well as York sports six players over 6-6 and four over 6-8. York gave N.C. State a run for a half (trailing 35-31 at the break) before falling 81-60. York, however, will be without one of its biggest players today as 6-9 senior Wes Anderson is out with an injury suffered in the N.C. State game.

August 31, 2008

A quick bus ride from the hotel (well, it would have been quick, but we managed to get lost within 4km of the hotel), we have arrived at Ryerson University, home of the Rams. Just blocks from the before mentioned "Times Square" of Toronto, this is an urban university and a step closer to the collegiate teams Penn State is used to playing. Within minutes of arrival we have: a roster (something so simple, yet so hard to come by so far), a stat crew and matching uniform table crew that would make the BJC proud. Big news, there will be anthems tonight for both country's and starting line-up introductions. There is a large scoreboard with player's numbers and stats on it as well, so the guys can see how they are doing. Ryerson's gym is comparable to a good high school gym, in some ways similar to State College High's gym. It seats about 500, has a balcony above one sideline, a nice multi-stained floor, and some pretty fetching wall graphics. This feels more like a college game. The Rams will take on Iona here tomorrow.

The roster is a bit closer to that as well, sporting four players over 6-5 and a 6-10 senior and 6-8 junior, one Boric Bakovic who is apparently the team stud averaging 23.9 points and 8.6 boards last season while earning second team OUA honors.

The focus in pre-game was 90% defense, 10% offense, not unusual for an Ed DeChellis coached team or this time of the year. Penn State looked at some film of yesterday's games and will stress stopping dribble penetration, help side defense getting into driving lanes, early location of men, proper trapping on the press, and guarding closely without getting your hands on an opponent (thus drawing fouls). We'll see how they do and if these rims are any friendly than yesterday's. I'm guessing yes, and with a day to recover and a more intense atmosphere the Lions will be ready to go.

In a nod to the freshmen, Coach DeChellis sends a starting five out of Chris Babb, Cammeron Woodyard, Billy Oliver and veterans Stanley Pringle and Andrew Jones. The Rams come out to a rap remix of Will Smith's impersonation of Muhammad Ali proclaiming, "The champ is here." Jamelle Cornley looks nervous....ok, not so much.

Penn State struggled early from the field in the opening quarter missing some open looks as Ryerson took an early lead on the Penn State youth. A nice Pringle drive and finish made it 14-11 Ryerson. Ten points from Drew Jones, including a two handed slam (Penn State's first dunk of the tour), kept Penn State close and cut the Ryerson lead to 19-17.

Funny thing about Canadian teams, the bench cheers like American softball teams. The Rams are chanting "defense" in unison as they try to build the lead on Penn State.

An Oliver three gets Penn State within one, 21-20, as Penn State heats up toward the end of the quarter and ends up shooting 53% for the first 10.

Coach DeChellis sends in the starting five, Battle, Morrissey, Cornley, Jackson and Brooks, to start the second 10 and his starting of the youth appears to have served two ends. It let the young guys get a taste of beginning a game and gave the veterans some motivation. This group appears intent on showing Ryerson the real deal. They quickly begin the most intense full-court pressing of the tour creating numerous steals (eight for the quarter) and getting several deflections.

Talor Battle drops a sweet pass to Jackson for a lay-up and when Cornley completes a nice post move the Lions have their first lead, 26-25. The game hits high gear when Penn State creates a deflection in the front court off the press, Brooks picks it up and drops a no look to Cornley who throws down a tomahawk jam that draws "oohs" from the gathered crowd of 100 or so.

Danny Morrisey puts the hammer down on the Rams as he takes advantage of the steals created by the press to drain open looks from three. He drains two threes and draws a charge on the other end (both calling cards throughout his career) in the space of 20 seconds and the Lions are rolling up 12, 44-32, with 3:59 to play. Morrissey would end the half 4-for-4 from the arc as Penn State would shoot 68% from the floor and 75% from the arc for the half. The lids are definitely off the rims. Penn State outscores Ryerson 37-17 in the quarter.

A terrific half from the Rams Boris Bakovic keeps the Rams in it. He goes 9-of-15 from the floor for 21 points. He wears #23 on his back and is doing his best impression of the "Great One" hitting from numerous angles, fade-aways in the post and over several defenders. Penn State takes a 57-40 lead to the half. The second 20 should be interesting.

Penn State comes out with the same five that started the second quarter and keeps the pressure on. Both teams fill it up for the first 2-3 minutes as Penn State extends to a 68-48 lead with 7:24 to play. A mystery technical foul on Cornley stops the action and takes the intensity down a notch for a few minutes. Cornley and Bakovic have been playing each other tough all game and apparently the Canadian officials don't like Cornley's physicality. The Big Ten this ain't. Cornly has a polite discussion with the officials to curtail and international crisis and play resumes, but it's noticeable some air has gone out of the room.

Penn State works on their 1-3-1 set and continues to extend the lead as the intensity returns to the game.

****PLAY OF THE TOUR ALERT**** Lets hope the Big Ten Network cameras and Hoops story cameras traveling with the Lions captured this one because you're going to want to see it. Penn State gets a deflection out of the 1-3-1. David Jackson dives full-out to the near sideline to save the ball between two Ryerson players and bats it forward perfectly to Stanley Pringle whose headed up floor. Pringle takes two dribbles and lofts a perfect alley-oop to Cornley who throws down a one-handed jam over a Ryerson defender as the Penn State bench erupts and jaws drop among the gathered fans.

Penn State built as much as a 28-point lead in the quarter, playing mostly its regular starters, and then started going to its bench again.

Chris Babb showed some skill and court sense in the fourth quarter making a great shot fake and finishing with a drive in traffic in the lane and finding teammates with several nice passes.

The Nittany Lions broke the 100 mark following a nice transition 14-footer from Woodyard (smooth stroke, nothin' but net). Will Leiner added a late drive and scoop and Penn State collected it's third victory of the tour 102-68. Penn State shot 60% for the game and 11-of-23 from three. Battle led Penn State with 17, going 4-of-5 from three and Morrissey added 16, hitting 5-of-9 from the arc. Cornley had 13, Jones 12 and Pringle 11 (Again!) while Brooks played his best game of the tournament logging nine points and a team high six boards and three steals.

Bakovic ended the night with 34 points on 13-of-22 shooting, his percentage dropping after Cornley got into him. He's a good player none-the-less, the best the Lions have seen on the tour so far, and got it going early against the Lions' youth, but Cornley is still itching to get 40-minutes on him.

Shortly after the game, Pringle was asked by a student hanging outside the gym if he was a volleyball player. The Lions were back to reality. The Big Ten this ain't.

Game 3 impressions: Penn State rose to the intensity of its opponent playing its best game of the tour against its best opponent (and best opposing player) yet. The Nittany Lions' regular first 5-6 players played their best game yet, showing an athleticism and intensity in the press that drove the speedometer on the game to full throttle...If Penn State can get its young players to play with the same intensity and desire (which they surely will once their more familiar with the system) the Lions will have something going... With the athletes and length Penn State can put on the press now, the Lions multiple three-point shooters, Morrissey, Battle and Pringle to start, become an even more dangerous threat with their ability to knock down open threes in transition, off deflections and off drive and kick plays. In a fast paced game, they can put points on the board quickly (evident tonight) and in that scenario may shoot the Lions into a few upsets this season...When Jeff Brooks is on his game, he can fill up a stat sheet and give the Lions tremendous length and court savvy on the perimeter...Jamelle Cornley competes with an intensity and ferocity that raises the level of play of the whole team and the Lions will be a different team with him back at full speed (but, you probably already knew that).

Morning in Toronto

Another beautiful day in Toronto. After some cajoling a crew of David Jackson, Drew Jones, Chris Babb, Steve Kirkpatrick, Adam Highberger and Will Leiner along with Director of Operations Jon Perry and assistant coach Dan Earl and his wife, Sheila, set off to get to the top of Toronto's signature building, the CN Tower. The world's largest free standing structure, the tower offers a spectacular view of the city 1,136 feet up. A large elevator with windows to the outside wisks the group to the top at a rate of 15 miles an hour, much to the delight of all except for Earl who hates these things but is a good sport for Sheila and JP (Perry) who was sweating this ride for the whole 90-minute wait in line.

For your $24 ticket (American, cheaper in Canadian though the exchange rate is virtually equal) you get to stroll inside and outside and take in 360-degree views of the skyline and waterfront. They also have a great "glass floor" that you can stand on and feel suspended above the city. Drew Jones takes to it immediately and is laying down, taking photos and posing for pictures. Jackson inches toward the edge, leans his camera over and takes a shot, but hesitates to step on, which becomes even more humorous when teammates point out the three toddlers rolling around on the glass and looking down like they were in their living room. Jackson eventually works his way on the glass and the group takes several pictures. Highberger, Jones and Babb take it a step further laying face down on the glass to get the full suspension effect. Earl never really puts a hole foot on the glass, despite the continued pressuring of the players and his wife. Not gonna happen. The group stays on top of Toronto for about 30 minutes and gets asked for several autographs. All is good until a young couple approaches the group on the elevator down. Their nice enough, but when they mention they are from Michigan, they get the playfull wrath of the group. Ammends are made by the time the elevator reaches bottom and the players pose for a picture with the pair before sending them off with shouts and some advice on who to cheer for in the future.

The players have about another hour of down time until game preparation begins at 3:00 p.m. The Lions take on Ryerson tonight at 7:00 p.m. It's a short two blocks to the arena and you can actually see the Ryerson University sign directly outside the hotel window.

Third Gameday vs. Ryerson @ 7:00 p.m. - To Come

August 30, 2008

Game 2 - Second Half

Penn State returned to its original five for the beginning of the second half and quickly reestablished a 20-point lead. Penn State went up 56-39 on a nice feed from Battle to Cornley for a lay-up down the lane and a Pringle three made it 59-39 with 15:00 to play.

The first five once again displayed the crisp passing and ball movement evident in the first 10 minutes of the first half. A bucket from David Jackson pushed the lead to 61-39 and Penn State once again began substituting as Coach DeChellis took the opportunity to look at different combinations and get some young guys some time.

One old guy hits the floor earlier than usual as Will Leiner entered the game with 14:30 to play and got some time with the first unit guys. He did a nice job, drawing a foul with a great baseline block-out and taking a charge in the lane.

A Cornley board and three-point play pushed the lead to 64-40 and a Cammeron Woodyard three made it 67-40 with 12:20 left. Woodyard made a pair of free throws for a 71-42 lead, Penn State's largest.

Jeff Brooks has been struggling with some wisdom teeth that will likely be pulled nest week. Though the distraction seems to have taken a little bit of the edge of his game he made some nice plays in the second half, one a nice cross-court, no-look feed to Oliver for a lay-up.

Oliver added a nice post move later in the game. Woodyard pulled a big offensive board and then calmly recollected and sank a 12-foot baseline jumper. Adam Highberger made a nice low post entry to Andrew Jones for a pair on the block.

Sheridan tried to rally at points with some outside jumpers, but Penn State came away with an 83-65 victory behind 8-of-10 shooting from Cornley for 17 points. Pringle added 11 as the pair led PSU in scoring for the second game.

Game 2 Impressions: Penn State's first five appear to be in good sync and the passing and ball movement are at a high level. The Nittany Lions lived on their ability to share the ball and find the open shot in the absence of Geary Claxton and Cornley during large chunks of last season and that has carried over. Penn State's increased length and athleticism with the addition of the freshmen, particularly Woodyard and Babb on the perimeter, could make this team much more difficult to move the ball against and more effective in the full-court press. David Jackson looked like a very effective ball hawk and trapper on the backline of that press.

Billy Oliver's parents and three siblings made the trip north from New Jersey and waited to greet the freshman after the game.

The bus ride back to the hotel was ebullient with much chatter and even a little singing from Battle. The team will get a late dinner at the hotel and then have free time to explore a few of the downtown sites near the hotel with a 12 p.m. curfew. Breakfast isn't until 10:30 tomorrow, so they can have some fun and sleep in. That's all for tonight.

Game 2 - First half

Again, no roster is available for this game. A last minute accounting by Sheridan's very cordial head coach, literally asking players on the floor what number they are wearing under their warm-ups, gets some names and numbers in the scorebook. While unofficial, it appears Sheridan has no players over 6-4 and most 6-0 or under, but they are more athletic than Waterloo and have a history of success in their league. The crowd looks to be around 100 or so and the home folks have the rap music blaring at high decibels. It's a relief when they cut the tunes for introductions.

Penn State starts Battle, Pringle, Cornley, Jackson and Morrissey in this one. The starting five come out looking sharp despite three hours spent lounging at the mall and on the bus between games. Sheridan comes out in a zone, but Penn State passes the ball crisply and makes the extra passes to get good looks.

A pair of Morrissey threes has the Lions up 14-6 early. A Cornley dunk on a nice hit-ahead from Battle makes it 18-6 and Penn State is rolling. Sheridan uses two timeouts to calm the tide but PSU is soon up 20. Cornley scores eight-straight and Penn State's aggressive defense and passing is carving Sheridan up. The combination of Pringle and Battle on the floor together looks every bit as effective as it was toward the end of last season.

A pair of threes from Battle, who seems to have found his stroke in this one, makes it 30-7 and Coach DeChellis begins to substitute liberally. Cornley won't see the floor again this half. "Half," that's right. This game they decided to play 20-minute halves and a 30-second shot clock abandoning at least some of the FIBA rules.

Free throws keep Sheridan within hailing distance until they find the range on a couple of threes and Penn State's subs lack the crispness of the starters. Again the three freshmen are getting good amounts of playing time.

Sheridan gets within 11, 42-31 after some threes. A nice Pringle drive and dish to Oliver for a bucket to close the half has Penn State leading 44-31 after the first 20. The officials have called the game tight and Penn State has picked up 13 fouls to Sheridan's six.

After about a 40-minute bus ride through Toronto's version of Times Square, the theatre district and Toronto suburbs undergoing a tremendous building boom with seemingly a new high rise condo going up on every block, the team arrived at the Sheridan campus. It's move in day for the new students and they are unloading in front of dorms.

Today's game will be held in Sheridan's new sports building that also serves as a recreation center. While a nice facility, it gives new definition to the term "band box." There are six rows of bleachers behind each baseline and eight along just one sideline while the team benches sit just in front of the far wall. Best guess is it seats about 300 people. A far cry from the 100,000-plus the football team will kick off its season against simultaneously today at noon. The good news is the players are still feeling the excitement of the first game of the season. "Oh man, it's hitting me we're playing a game today," Danny Morrissey said at breakfast. "I'm getting nervous, man."

Sheridan will play four games against NCAA Division I teams on the weekend as they take on the Nittany Lions, Coach DeChellis' last coaching gig East Tennessee State, UNC Charlotte and Hampton.

Today the Nittany Lions begin with the Waterloo Warriors, who appear at first glance to be severely undersized for this challenge. We're still awaiting a roster, but it looks as though their biggest player is about 6-7, have about four around 6-4 and the rest right around the 6-0 area or shorter. Well, sounds like we won't get a roster as one of the coaches tells me, "I've got it in my head." Great!

A few fans, lets call it 25, have found their way into the gym prior to tip, whether there will be more who knows?

With new uniforms still on order for the three freshmen, the Nittany Lions will take the floor today in practice gear. Let's hope they continue to shoot as well as they have been in practice the last week in this gym which is about half the size of the Lions' South Gym practice area in the Jordan Center.

Man, these rims sound tight! Clanging like a freight train full of lead piping. Waterloo is not hitting much in warm-ups. Not their home gym, so maybe they're just getting the feel.

Danny Morrissey's parents, Jim and Mary Ellen, have joined the crowd which has swelled to around 40.

Table crew just returned from meeting with the officials and quote, "Got a briefing on FIBA rules that made our heads spin." This could be interesting. Nobody seems to know exactly what the rules are except the officials. (Relieved word comes after the first game that we will play NCAA rules later tonight).

Morrissey, Cornley, Battle, Brooks and Jones start the game for the Lions.

Game time and the tightness of the rims is having an impact. Penn State can't get much to drop, particularly Battle who goes 1-of-5 from three in the first half. Pretty good defense and particularly pressure from PSU guards give the Lions the advantage. Battle creates several steals and the Lions do a good job pressing and trapping and create several Waterloo shot clock violations on the 24-second clock.

A Morrissey three opens up an 11-2 PSU lead, but a 5-0 Waterloo run won't let the Lions get away.

Penn State plays its bench fairly liberally in the first half. Cammeron Woodyard is the first freshman off and third sub for PSU. He replaces Jeff Brooks. Chris Babb is next followed by Joonas Suotamo and Billy Oliver, the sixth man off the bench. Pringle and Jackson come off one and two.

A Battle steal sparks the Lions who go on a 9-0 run to take an 18-7 lead. Jackson completes a nice bank finish off a feed from Pringle. Waterloo again responds with a 5-0 run to close within 18-12 as Ben Frisby knocks down back-to-back buckets. Penn State again extends the lead with a 6-0 run.

Billy Oliver shows the basketball sense the coaches have talked about as he steps into a passing lane, makes a steal and gets fouled on the other end. He also makes a nice block from behind after Suotamo's man beats him off the dribble, something for which he gets the wrath of Coach DeChellis.

Fun to see Oliver, Babb and Woodyard on the floor together for several minutes. This is the future

A nice drive and pass from Brooks to Jones who finishes completes the Lions scoring for the half as they take a 33-21 lead to halftime.

Waterloo came out firing to start the second half and drained several threes, including three in a row from Dan White to cut the Penn State lead to 39-33 a few minutes into the second half. Meanwhile, Drew Jones picked up his fourth foul just 20 seconds in and went to the bench limiting Penn State's post game. Penn State having some frustration with the officiating not allowing PSU players to be physical posting up, yet also swallowing the whistle on forays to the hoop in which it looks as though they were clearly fouled and on screens which continually move. Nothing new, the American Olympic team has been dealing with this type of international officiating for years.

Cornley establishes order again contributing to a 5-0 run with a nice jump hook and then Penn State notches up the defense pressing full-court and trapping. Stanley Pringle's quick hands and feet become a big factor as he picks the guard's pockets and creates turnovers off traps in the backcourt. His strip and score was part of an 11-1 Penn State run, all built on the defense.

Pringle's three and a Cornley lay-up made it 56-36 and the Warriors had met their Waterloo. Penn State began to clear its bench. Pringle delivered a nice feed to Oliver, and Woodyard and Babb scored back-to-back buckets to give Penn State a 62-40 edge.

Woodyard looked very comfortable and was aggressive on the offensive end. He has a nice shot with range and a strong upper body, which gives him the ability to finish in the lane.

Adam Highberger played well in the fourth quarter as he drained a three seconds after coming off the bench and played aggressive defense forcing turnovers. A former Central Michigan player working the scoreboard commented at one point, "That's the guy you want to play defense against you everyday in practice."

Oliver showed a nice stroke from three, draining one, and a strong basketball sense that may get him on the floor in his true-freshman season. He picked a guards pocket out past the three-point line and then deftly used his body to create contact on the other end and draw a pair of free throws.

With the bench playing most of the fourth quarter, this one ended 83-52 in favor of the Lions. Cornley led the way with 13 points and Pringle added 11. Battle had nine, despite struggling shooting, and Jackson had eight and Morrissey, despite also struggling from three, added eight. Oliver posted seven in his Blue & White debut. Every Lion scored.

Last impressions from game 1: The rims were a bit tight and Penn State struggled from the perimeter (Battle and Morrissey combined to shoot 2 of 11 from three), but turned up the full-court defense and used their speed and quickness to overwhelm Waterloo. The young players look solid and Penn State looks to have the ability and the desire to play the faster tempo, full-court defensive style Coach DeChellis would prefer. Then again, there was a 24-second shot clock.

Off to the mall for lunch and some shopping, then back at it at 7:00 p.m. vs. home standing Sheridan.

August 30, 2008

Coach DeChellis arrives about a quarter to eight his shirt soaked with the sweat of an early morning workout.

Players and staff got their fill of a spread of eggs, bacon, sausage, French toast, oatmeal, a table full of fruit and cereals and breakfast rolls. With the breaking news of the Republican vice presidential pick yesterday, Alaska governor Sarah Palin, the Toronto Globe and Mail has several stories on the selection. Just for informational purposes most take a negative slant. Talor Battle, Stanley Pringle and Danny Morrissey discussed the selection and checked out her pictures in the paper.

"She's good lookin' but that hair style is old," Battle said upon checking out a large photo from Palin's pageant queen days.

"Well, yeah. It's from like the 80's," Morrissey quickly explains.

While the team eats, trainer Jon Salazer sets up his taping table in the corner and works his way through each member of the team. One of the first to arrive for the 8 a.m. breakfast, "Saz" is the last to actually get to eat after he finishes up Morrissey's ankles, the last tape job of the morning. No big deal, he's been up for awhile, logging a three- mile run on the Toronto streets before breakfast.

Players will head back to their rooms for an hour, and likely a quick nap, before regrouping at 10:15 to head to the arena and their first game of the season.

August 29, 2008

The bus is obviously not built for men of this size and particularly for this long of a trip. Coach Preston has the worst of it from the staff as he folds his 6-8 frame into a seat. "Somebody is going to end up with a size 16 in their grill," he says as he looks for a way to stretch his legs.

Athletic Director Tim Curley sees the team off and pops in on the bus to wish the team well. All the players are on board except for Villanova transfer Andrew Ott who won't be allowed to travel with the team or play until the end of the fall semester due to NCAA transfer rules. Coach DeChellis' wife, Kim, and daughter, Lauren, have come on this trip as has Coach Kanaskie's son, Kyle, and Coach Earl's new wife, Sheila.

The team will go through three movies on the bus DVD system on the way up and pretty much everyone watches intently. "Live Free or Die Hard," the last from the long running series of movies starring Bruce Willis starts the trip off. Next comes "Casino Royale," the latest James Bond flick. At the conclusion of the movie Jeff Brooks exclaims with exasperation, "Why would it end that way? It isn't solved. We just watched that movie for no reason!"

The commentary from players during the movie is often more entertaining than the movie itself. "The Program" starring James Caan and Halle Berry is the last flick of the night. The 1990's era movie about an inside look at a collegiate football program brings much commentary and laughter from players. They particularly enjoy with laughter the occasional steroid rages of an over pumped linebacker.

The trip is broken up by an hour stop at a huge Buffalo mall for food. Interesting note: the "Cajun Connection" serves a mean plate of lo mein, orange chicken, and broccoli and peppers. Who knew the Chinese had such a large influence on New Orleans cuisine?

The border crossing into Canada is packed with vehicles all the way back across the bridge. Joonas Suotamo draws the wrath of teammates when his Finnish passport requires extra time and paperwork to approve. Several people wonder jokingly if the U.S. will let him back in on Monday and if he packed enough clothes for an extended stay. It takes about 40 minutes to get into Canada, but Battle and Brooks take the opportunity to loudly debate the proper way to play "Password" and explain how the game is played to freshmen Chris Babb and Cammeron Woodyard. Battle, a floor general at point-guard, is not afraid to give direction on the bus as well as he orders, "Yo! Time to get quite. I'm trying to watch the movie now."

It's going to be late when we finally roll into Toronto, but the prerequisite snack will be ready and waiting. Fridays are Coach's Night for snack and the menu takes the form of a platter of hot wings, chicken noodle soup, ice cream and some salad, just to make it feel healthier.

Tomorrow its up early and time to hit the floor for a noon tip vs. Waterloo.

August 28, 2008

The Lions will make a stop at Buffalo's Walden Galleria Mall for some food and quick browsing before heading onto Toronto for a scheduled arrival at the downtown Marriott at 10 p.m. Then, as with every road trip, they'll enjoy a snack, usually a large pizza, and load in some extra carbs before a big day with a pair of games on Saturday.

As with most tailgaters heading to State College for the football opener with Coastal Carolina, the Lions will be up early hitting breakfast at 8 a.m. and then departing for Sheridan Colleges Davis Campus at 9:45 to play their first game at noon against the Waterloo Warriors. If you're heading to the football game or listening to it on the radio look for updates as we'll keep you posted on the score as the Lions do battle for the first time this season. Following the first game, the Lions will have some time to chill at the One Square Mall and maybe pick up some new shoes before returning to Sheridan to take on the Sheridan College Bruins at 7:00 p.m.

Sunday morning the players get some free time until the afternoon to check out Toronto shopping and attractions, or maybe just sleep. They'll regroup for pre-game at 2:30 p.m. before eating and then heading off to play the Ryerson Rams in Toronto at 7:00 p.m.

After another late night, the Lions will be up early again on Labor Day as they get breakfast at 8:00 a.m. and then head to the Tait McKenzie Centre in Toronto to take on the York University Lions in a noon tip. Penn State will hit the road as soon as possible following the game and head to Niagara Falls where they plan to board the Maid of the Mist and get a close up look of one of the world's biggest falls.

There definitely is a sense of anticipation, camaraderie and energy in the Lions' practices. There has been a lot of talking and encouragement of teammates and the group seems to genuinely enjoy playing with each other and practicing. Stanley Pringle ended today's practice with a nothin' but net three off a nice swing pass after which Coach DeChellis bellowed, "All day long Stanley, all day long!"

Another highlight of the day was Talor Battle displaying the nifty passing skills that brought "oohs" from the Jordan Center faithful last year. Today it was a drive and sweet behind the back, drop pass to a charging 245-pound Andrew Jones who took one step and finished down the lane. Nice! A big thumbs up from an obviously tired (who wouldn't be that played as hard as him), but smiling Jamelle Cornley when asked how his knee was feeling following the day's work also served as a highlight.

New assistant coach Lewis Preston is fitting in very nicely. He was a vocal presence in practice from the get-go, actually stopping a full-court drill on day one, stepping to center court and, in no uncertain terms, telling the team to pick it up. He is also creating a nice report with players, particularly the big men which are his main focus, constantly taking them aside with an arm around their shoulder and offering advice or encouragement. Plus, at about 6-8, 240 he looks like he could play tomorrow. He's definitely keeping fit, as do all the coaches. He and Director of Basketball Operations Jon Perry were spotted hitting the stair master hard just prior to practice.

Freshman Chris Babb has a wonderful, pure shooter's stroke with nice rotation on his ball and a beautiful follow through to the classic "goose neck" position, as my camp coaches used to say. He works on that stroke early before practice every day, first starting virtually under the rim and flipping the ball in with just his wrist and then slowly working his way out a couple feet at a time, 5-10 shots per stop, until he's got that nice form down. Then he steps way out to about 24 feet and fires several shots, again focusing on the nice wrist flip, before coming into the arc and working his way around several times. On this day he hit in the high 80 percent range, and normally nothing but net.

Tomorrow the team hits the road for Canada and looks to survive several hours on a bus built for people much smaller than them. What do the players watch on their DVD players, listen to on their Ipods or do for 5-6 hours? Stay tuned.

August 27, 2008

Anyway, I digress. FIBA rules will be evident in a few major ways, many of which you may have noticed during Olympic action. Most notably is the wider trapezoid lane, which the Nittany Lions have had taped on the Jordan Center floor this past week. Other notable rule differences will be a 24-second shot clock, four 10-minute periods of play, an eight-second backcourt violation, and the ability to touch the ball on the rim once it has initially struck the rim. Penn State has been adjusting to these rules this week, particularly working to get into the offense and get a shot in 11 seconds less than the 35 seconds allowed in the college game. The Nittany Lions will actually catch a little bit of a break with the international three-point line which measures 20 feet, 6 inches, three inches closer than the 20 feet, 9 inch line the collegiate game will use this year and Penn State has been practicing with since the end of last season.

A few observations from today's practice: Talor Battle led the way on every sprint this writer witnessed. Just the kind of determination, grit and competitiveness you want from your team's point-guard. By the way, the Nittany Lions run sprints under time and mostly with several links across the court instead of length of the court, thus providing many more starts and stops and more burn for tired legs. Length of court sprints are normally saved for those who fail to make the allotted number of cross court sprints in the given time and normally come in the form of a down and back in under 10 seconds.

Penn State continued to shoot the ball extremely well today. The Blue team, led by a strong performance from Battle, scored 24 points in the first of two 10-minute scrimmages, a blistering 96-point pace for a 40-minute game. You can point to the defense with that kind of scoring, but many of the shots came on tough looks including a deep three from freshman Chris Babb who was put on his butt during the shot by the defender. The Nittany Lions continue to show a great number of players that can shoot the three well including a run of four straight in which Battle, David Jackson, Babb, and Stanley Pringle all hit in succession. Jackson showed his diversity hitting a three in transition off a nice feed from Battle and then scoring on the following possession on a nice slashing drive in the lane and shot off the glass.

Senior three-point ace Danny Morrissey showed the form that has him sixth all-time on the PSU career three-point charts with 175. Morrissey knocked down the three ball from all over the floor hitting off a screen in the deep corner, dropping one in transition and firing an off balance three that found the bottom of the net to beat the shot clock. Always a solid free throw shooter, Morrissey also capped a victory for his team in one scrimmage swishing four straight at the line. This despite the mild taunting of assistant coach Dan Earl.

Earl: "Play for the miss guys, I've seen this before!" Morrissey, after hitting nothing but net: "In your dreams!"

Other highlights of the day included a Battle buzzer beating three to end the first scrimmage, a nice drive and kick from Pringle to a wide open Jeff Brooks who buried the three, a beautiful jump hook post move from Jamelle Cornley and a nice pick and roll between Battle and Villanova transfer Andrew Ott that saw the 6-10 big man finish at the rim.

Tomorrow we'll look at the Lions Canadian tour schedule as well as take another peak in at practice as Penn State prepares to head to the home of the Maple Leafs, Blue Jays and Raptors on Friday.

August 26, 2008

The Nittany Lions are allowed 10 practice dates prior to the games that begin on August 30. That's a big jump on the NCAA's official first day of basketball practice slated for Friday, October 17. Penn State has been hitting it hard and getting the most out of the early opportunity to review offensive and defensive schemes and familiarize three freshmen to Penn State's playbook. The Nittany Lions got four practices in during the first week of August before the end of the summer semester. Under NCAA rules, the freshmen were not allowed to participate in those first four practices. The whole team hit the floor beginning the week of August 24 as the Penn State fall semester got under way and the freshmen could join the fray. The Nittany Lions have been putting in two-a-days since then going bright and early at 6:30 a.m. and again at 3:30 p.m. Penn State will get in its remaining six practice dates this week prior to departing for Toronto via bus at 2:00 p.m. on Friday.

Early practices have been heavy on teaching and reviewing defensive principles as the Nittany Lions refine their man-to-man defense and help rotations. Offensive sets have also been reviewed and taught to the freshmen and the new players have quickly been integrated into Penn State's fast-paced and competitive practice environment. The team runs from drill to drill in quick succession and most drills are competitive with scores kept and losers doomed to run sprints. The coaches place players in three five-man teams prior to practice, these change daily, and they go against each other in the competitive drills.

The first thing Penn State fans may notice about this year's team is the strength gained by last year's freshmen over the summer. Guard Talor Battle has added several pounds of muscle and looks much thicker and stronger in the upper body, while forward David Jackson has established himself as one of the strongest players on the team and now has the chest and arm muscles to show for it. Forward Andrew Jones, as many of you know, added more than 30 pounds in his first two years at Penn State, but has now refined that mass into a more sculpted and solid physique. While forward Jeff Brooks has struggled to add pounds to his 6-8 frame, he has gotten stronger and it has shown in his ability to finish at the rim, rebound and the ease with which he is shooting the deep three. Speaking of which, the team was shooting the ball very well today with Battle hitting four straight threes in the midst of two competitive scrimmage-type drills, Brooks, Danny Morrissey and Jamelle Cornley all dropping threes and Andrew Ott finishing with a nice post move in the lane. One of the strengths of this year's team will be the ability of nearly the entire roster to shoot well from the perimeter and behind the arc and it has shown early. Playing with the new NCAA three-point line, which will move to 20 feet, 9 inches (a foot behind the previous line) for the 2008-09 season, has not seemed to have had a major effect on the Nittany Lion's shooting yet.

Lest we forget about the defense, Cornley stepped in to take a terrific charge toward the end of one full-court scrimmage today that brought loud approval from the rest of the team and staff. Cornley, by the way, has regained 100 percent health following knee surgery late last season and began playing full speed in July. He is going all-out in every drill in practice and his emotional presence and leadership has been felt strongly as he prepares for his senior campaign.

We will file again tomorrow with a look at the Nittany Lions' schedule for their Canadian tour and some of the FIBA basketball rules they will be playing under during their four games with the Canadian schools.