December 3, 2017
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's basketball team plays host to Wisconsin on Monday, December 4 in the Nittany Lions' Big Ten Conference home opener. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. ET at the Bryce Jordan Center.
GAMEDAY
Wisconsin (3-5, 0-1 Big Ten) at Penn State (7-2, 1-0 Big Ten)
Monday, December 4
7 p.m. ET
Bryce Jordan Center (15,261)
WATCH: ESPN2 & WatchESPN.com
Jason Benetti and Dan Dakich
LISTEN: Penn State Sports Network, Steve Jones (pxp) and Dick Jerardi (analyst)
2017-18 Affiliates and free online at GoPSUsports.com/lionvision
WHITE-OUT CONDITIONS
Penn State's student section, "The Legion of Blue" is calling for a White-Out Monday night in the BJC. All Penn State students are invited to enjoy a free pre-game nacho bar and the first 1,000 Penn State students to enter the BJC will receive a free Penn State Basketball "Climb With Us" T-shirt.
WISCONSIN BADGERS
RECORD: 3-5, 0-1 Big Ten
Coach: Greg Gard (3rd year at Wisconsin)
Starters Returning/Lost: 1/4
2017-18 Leading Scorer:
#22 Ethan Happ, Jr., F - 16.3 ppg
2017-18 Leading Rebounder:
#22 Ethan Happ, Jr. F - 8.8 rpg
PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS
RECORD: 7-2, 1-0 Big Ten
Coach: Patrick Chambers (7th year at Penn State)
Starters Returning/Lost: 5/0
2017-18 Leading Scorer:
#10 Tony Carr, So., G - 21.3 ppg / 4.3 apg
2017-18 Leading Rebounder:
#24 Mike Watkins, RSo. F - 7.6 rpg
NITTANY LION PROBABLE STARTERS
# / Name / Pos. / ELG. / Pts / REB / STAT / NOTES
11 / Lamar Stevens / F / So./ 15.2 / 6.7 / 2nd ppg/rpg | Leading scorer in Iowa win (22 pts, 5 reb, 2 blks)
24 / Mike Watkins / F / R-So. / 11.1 / 7.5 / 26 blks | Nationally ranked for total blocks, blocks pg (3.29) & FG % (67.8)
10 / Tony Carr / G / So. / 20.6 / 4.5 / 4.9 apg | Scored 13 pts in 2nd half at Iowa, dished out 9 assts
23 / Josh Reaves / G / Jr. / 11.0 / 4.5 / B1G steals leader | Nationally ranked for total steals & steals pg (2.63)
33 / Shep Garner / G / Sr. / 10.1 / 2.0 / 240 career 3s | 12 pts in Iowa win off 4 treys
FOLLOW: Twitter @PennStateMBB & @Coach_Chambers | Facebook | Instagram @PennStateMBB.
TICKETS
Tickets are available for Penn State home games, including the Monday, December 4, Big Ten season home opener vs. Wisconsin. Visit gopsusports.com/tickets/m-baskbl-tickets.html for more information.
OPENING TIP
Wisconsin and Penn State have met previously in two Big Ten openers (2012-13 & 2014-15) at Madison, Wis., but this will be the first time the two programs have met in a conference home opener for the Nittany Lions since January 3, 2010.
SERIES RECORD VS. WISCONSIN
Wisconsin has a 35-10 advantage in the series which consists entirely of games played in Big Ten Conference play beginning with Penn State's first season in the league in 1992-93. The last Penn State win came in the 2011 Big Ten Tournament.
The Nittany Lions and Badgers have met only once in each of the last three years and Wisconsin has won the last 10 regular-season meetings. In the five games in that stretch in games played in the Bryce Jordan Center, the point margin has been in single digits. Here's a look at the last 10 meetings:
| Date | Location | PS Pts | W Pts | Result |
| 3/11/2011 | H | 36 | 33 | W-B10 |
| 1/31/2012 | H | 46 | 52 | L |
| 2/19/2012 | A | 55 | 65 | L |
| 1/3/2013 | A | 51 | 60 | L |
| 2/10/2013 | H | 60 | 63 | L |
| 3/2/2014 | H | 66 | 71 | L |
| 12/31/2014 | A | 72 | 89 | L |
| 2/18/2015 | H | 47 | 55 | L |
| 1/21/2016 | H | 60 | 66 | L |
| 1/24/2017 | A | 55 | 82 | L |
HOME SWEET HOME
Penn State picked up a rare win at Iowa City and after two road games are looking forward to being back at home in the Bryce Jordan Center.
After being away from the BJC for two games earlier this year, the Nittany Lions returned home to top Oral Roberts. Including the 2016-17 season, Penn State is 4-1 in the next home game after playing two games away from their home court.
| Dates | Games Away From BJC | Next Home Game | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 2016 | vs. Pittsburgh (N), vs. St. Johns (N) | Morgan State | W |
| Jan. 2017 | at Michigan, vs. Michigan State (Palestra) | #24/24 Minnesota | W |
| Jan. 2017 | at Purdue, at Wisconsin | Illinois | W |
| Feb. 2017 | at Illinois, at Nebraska | #14/14 Purdue | L |
| Nov. 2017 | vs. Pittsburgh (N), vs. #16/19 Texas A&M | Oral Roberts | W |
Penn State won't be away from the BJC for two games again until a January 20, 2018 trip to Northwestern and January 25 contest at Ohio State.
FIVE SEEING DOUBLE
Five Nittany Lions are currently averaging in double-figure scoring with Tony Carr (20.6), Lamar Stevens (15.2), Josh Reaves (11.1), Shep Garner (11.0) and Mike Watkins (10.3).
NEVER TRAILED
Penn State never trailed in the win at Iowa, the first time the Nittany Lions had accomplished that feat on the road in the regular season since the 2010-11 season at Northwestern (PS W 66-52, 2-24-2011). The most recent game in which Penn State led from start-to-finish was against Nebraska in the 2017 Big Ten Tournament (3/8/17).
B1G STEALS LEADER
Penn State is tops in the Big Ten and ranked fifth in the nation in total steals with 93. The Nittany Lions are ninth nationally in steals per game with 10.3 per contest.
KENPOM.COM RANKINGS
In the December 3 kenpom.com rankings, Penn State is 32nd overall and 20th in defensive efficiency (adjusted).
PENN STATE SPORTS NETWORK
More than 40 radio stations in Pennsylvania and New York will carry Nittany Lion Basketball games during the 2017-18 season. Radio announcer Steve Jones, in his 36th year with Penn State, will handle the play-by-play with USBWA Hall of Famer Dick Jerardi of the Philadelphia Daily News serving as analyst. Broadcasts begin 30 minutes prior to tip-off with the "Penn State Bookstore Pregame Show." Broadcasts conclude with the PA Propane Association Postgame Show post-game show featuring coach and player interviews, game statistics and scores from around the nation.
Broadcasts are also available on SiriusXM with specific channels for each game announced in game notes.
THE PENN STATE COACHES SHOW PRESENTED BY PEPSI
"The Penn State Coaches Show -- Featuring Pat Chambers and Presented by Pepsi" with Steve Jones and Roger Corey, airs live from Primanti Brothers in State College Thursday nights from 6:05-7:00 p.m. and ending in early March. "The Penn State Coaches Show" and game broadcasts can also be heard for free via www.GoPSUsports.com/lionvision. The Penn State Sports Network is syndicated by Penn State Sports Properties, a property of Learfield.