Pregame Reading: Three Things to KnowPregame Reading: Three Things to Know

Pregame Reading: Three Things to Know

March 20, 2018

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Just a few hours separate Penn State men's basketball from a its NIT quarterfinals tipoff on the road at Marquette. The Nittany Lions and the Golden Eagles get underway at 7 p.m. on ESPN.

Prior to tipoff though, check out three key storylines ahead of Penn State's first appearance in the NIT quarterfinals since taking home the title in 2009. The Nittany Lions have never lost an NIT quarterfinal outing at 5-0 all-time, having last met Marquette in the semifinals of the 1995 NIT.

Defending the Three
Penn State head coach Patrick Chambers noted Monday that key to his early prep in watching Marquette on film came in their performance from the 3-point line.

"It's amazing now seeing Howard and these guys, how they get shots up and they make three's at an alarming rate," Chambers said. You really have to be able to guard them, they're really good basketball players.

For the Golden Eagles, that strength from behind the arc comes from one of the most dangerous 3-point duos in the nation. Through March 18, Marquette's Markus Howard (109) and Andrew Rowsey (119) have combined for 228 3-pointers, good for the most in NCAA Division I.

Howard highlighted the season with a career-high 52 point outing in Marquette's win against Providence in early January. The sophomore guard finished 17-of-29 from the field and 11-for-19 from 3-point. His 11 triples set a Marquette record and a BIG EAST all-time mark.

Rebounding Key
Dominating on the boards is also another area Chambers mentioned this week.

"You have to do a really good job of defending the three but also limiting them to one chance," Chambers said. "Rebounding is going to be big, Temple got us pretty good."

On the year, the Nittany Lions have out-rebounded their opponents in 21 games, with a 17-4 record in games where Penn State has won the advantage on the glass.

With Penn State's Mike Watkins out with an injury, Chambers is pleased with what he has seen from freshman John Harrar. Combined with veteran Julian Moore, Chambers noted the two are combining for eight boards per game, which fills in well for the loss of the usual double-double from Watkins.

Harrar has started each of the last five games including both NIT outings against Temple and Notre Dame. He scored a career-high six points and added a personal-best four points to help the Nittany Lions against the Fighting Irish.

Long Term Benefits
While Chambers hasn't started any of the big picture, looking back-type of conversation at this point, there's certainly no doubting Penn State has a tremendous amount to gain in terms of valuable experience for its young squad.

"The fact that we're getting critical minutes for certain guys," Chambers said. "They get to play in game-like situations. At Notre Dame, wearing the green uni's, there's nothing better than that. You take these experiences and it's only going to help us for next year. As a staff it's only going to help us prepare, what we liked, what we didn't like and how we're going to move forward in the future."