Where did Penn State men’s basketball fall in this week’s AP Top 25 poll?
Penn State men’s basketball fell a spot in The Associated Press Top 25 poll after it was ranked in the top 20 last week.
The Nittany Lions earned the No. 21 ranking Monday afternoon, with 312 voting points in the poll. They were ranked No. 20 last week with 332 voting points.
Head coach Pat Chambers has led Penn State to a 11-2 record on the season and a 1-1 record in the early Big Ten slate. The Nittany Lions won their only game last week, a blowout 90-59 victory over the Cornell Big Red.
They were led by a trio of starters in the game who accounted for 56 of the team’s 90 points. Senior redshirt center Mike Watkins had a double-double in the game with a game high 19 points and 10 rebounds. He made a few jumpers as well, showing off improved range as a shooter. Chambers previously said Watkins and fellow center John Harrar were given more license to shoot this season from beyond the arc.
Senior forward Lamar Stevens tied Watkins with a game-high 19 points and added four assists, three rebounds, two blocks and a steal. Those type of stat-stuffing performances have become more of the norm for the star senior. Sophomore guard Myreon Jones added 18 points of his own in the game and stayed hot from beyond the arc, making 3-of-6 3-point attempts. He’s now shooting 41.9% from distance on the season.
The Nittany Lions are among six Big Ten teams ranked in Monday’s poll, the most of any conference in college basketball. Ohio State (No. 5), Michigan (No. 12), Michigan State (No. 14), Maryland (No. 15) are all ranked ahead of Penn State, while Iowa (No. 23) is behind the Nittany Lions. Two more Big Ten schools are receiving votes. Purdue, with 12 points, is ranked 10th among schools outside the top 25 while Indiana, with 5 points, is 13th in the same group.
The Nittany Lions will be back in action Saturday when they take on No. 23 Iowa at The Palestra in Philadelphia at 2 p.m. The Hawkeyes, who represent the beginning of the rest of Big Ten play, are 10-3 and will present an opportunity for Penn State to move back up in the poll. A win would give the Nittany Lions two against top-25 teams, with the first coming at home against No. 15 Maryland.
The next AP Poll will be released at noon Jan. 6.
AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll
(Monday, Dec. 30, 2019)
1. Gonzaga 1,621
2. Duke 1,516
3. Kansas 1,497
4. Oregon 1,361
5. Ohio State 1,277
6. Baylor 1,267
7. Louisville 1,196
8. Auburn 1,159
9. Memphis 1,055
10. Villanova 970
11. Butler 883
12. Michigan 880
13. San Diego State 780
14. Michigan State 747
15. Maryland 720
16. West Virginia 719
17. Kentucky 674
18. Florida State 531
19. Virginia 506
20. Dayton 483
21. Penn State 312
22. Texas Tech 175
23. Iowa 137
24. Wichita State 135
25. Arizona 113
Others receiving votes: Colorado 74, Xavier 58, DePaul 47, Washington 40, Northern Iowa 32, Utah State 30, Saint Mary’s 28, Marquette 27, Arkansas 19, Purdue 12, Georgetown 10, Creighton 10, Indiana 5, Houston 4, St. John’s 3, Virginia Tech 3, East Tennessee State 2, Seton Hall 2, BYU 2, Stanford 1, Yale 1, Florida 1
This story was originally published December 30, 2019 at 12:42 PM.
