State College, Pa. - March 5, 2002 - Penn State Nittany Lion basketball player Sharif Chambliss (Racine, Wisc.) was named to the 2002 All-Big Ten Team as voted on by the conference's media panel. Chambliss was an Honorable Mention pick and is the first Lion sophomore to earn all-conference laurels since Pete Lisicky was a third team pick in 1996.

Chambliss won two Big Ten regular season statistical titles, leading the league with a lofty 3.52 three-point per game mark and a sizzling .891 free throw percentage. The second-year player led the Nittany Lions with a 14.6 ppg mark this season. Chambliss shot a superb .428 from three-point land, which was also top ten in the conference. He was third on the team with 42 assists and led the squad with 32 steals.

Chambliss has hit for double figures in 26-straight games this year, showcasing his consistency. The only game he did not score 10 or more was the season-opener vs. Yale. No Penn State sophomore since the advent of Big Ten play has turned that trick.

Penn State was one of four teams that had one representative on the media's All-Big Ten list, joining co-champion Wisconsin, Michigan and Purdue. Northwestern had no picks on the team while Illinois and Ohio State had three each. Indiana, Michigan State, Iowa and Minnesota each had two reps on the teams.

The media first team is as follows: Brian Brown, Ohio State; Jared Jeffries, Indiana; Kirk Penney, Wisconsin; Marcus Taylor, Michigan State; Frank Williams, Illinois. The second team is as follows: Brian Cook, Illinois; Tom Coverdale, Indiana; Willie Deane, Purdue; Reggie Evans, Iowa; Rick Rickert, Minnesota. The third team is as follows: Adam Ballinger, Michigan State; LaVell Blanchard, Michigan; Brent Darby, Ohio State; Luke Recker, Iowa; Dusty Rychart, Minnesota. Honorable Mention: SHARIF CHAMBLISS, PENN STATE; Robert Archibald, Illinois, Boban Savovic, Ohio State. The media's Player of the Year is Jared Jeffries of Indiana; Freshman of the Year is Rick Rickert of Minnesota; and Coach of the Year is Bo Ryan of Wisconsin.

The coaches' first team mirrored the media's first team with Brown, Jeffries, Penney, Taylor and Williams earning the nod. The second team was the same with substitution of Ohio State's Brent Darby for Purdue's Deane. The third team for the media is as follows: Robert Archibald of Illinois, Willie Deane of Purdue; Tavaras Hardy of Northwestern, Luke Recker of Iowa and Dusty Rychart of Minnesota. Honorable Mention is as follows: Travarus Bennett of Minnesota; Winston Blake of Northwestern and Charlie Wills of Wisconsin. The coaches' Player of the Year is also Jeffries of Indiana; Freshman of the Year was Minnesota's Rickert; and Co-Defensive Players of the Year is Dane Fife of Indiana and Minnesota's Bennett.

The Nittany Lions concluded the regular season with a 7-20 mark, 3-13 in conference action. Penn State will enter this week's Big Ten tournament as the No. 11 seed and face No. 6 Minnesota in the first round, Thursday, at 7:10 p.m.