April 9, 2018
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State forward Lamar Stevens, who was selected as the 2018 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Most Outstanding Player, announced Monday that he will not pursue any professional options and will return for his junior season. The 6-7, 218-pound sophomore was an All-Big Ten Conference honorable mention selection and averaged 15.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game in 2017-18.
From North Wales, Pennsylvania, and Roman Catholic High School, Stevens was the Nittany Lions' leading scorer during their NIT title run with 19.2 points per game and set a Penn State NIT record with 30 points in the quarterfinal victory at Marquette. Ten of his 15 career games scoring 20 or more points occurred during this most recent campaign, including his 28-point performance in the NIT championship game win over Utah.
"I'm committed to continuing my education and my collegiate playing career at Penn State," said Stevens. "Several options were presented to me for my future and I reviewed them with my coaches and family, but I always felt strongly that staying in school was the best course of action."
Stevens became the second-ever Nittany Lion basketball player to achieve the 1,000 career-point milestone this past season. The two-year starter finished the 2017-18 season second on the team in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and minutes played. With 33 double-figure scoring games in his sophomore season, Stevens led the team in scoring nine times and Penn State was a perfect 9-0 in those contests. He was the Nittany Lions' top rebounder 10 times in his sophomore season.
"Lamar had an excellent season and he stepped up as a leader for us throughout the year," said Penn State men's basketball coach Patrick Chambers. "He got better and his experiences this year continued to build on a strong foundation. We're already excited about next season and believe his contributions, both on and off the court, are going to be part of his legacy."
For information or to make a 2018-19 Penn State men's basketball season ticket deposit, fans should go to nittanylionfeedback.com/se/3FF63F244373D7BF or call 1-800-NITTANY, weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Keep up to date with the latest information from Coach Patrick Chambers and the Nittany Lions on Twitter by following @Coach_Chambers and @PennStateMBB, liking the team's page on Facebook and following the team Instagram account at @PennStateMBB.