Penn State Hosts #16 Maryland on Senior Day SaturdayPenn State Hosts #16 Maryland on Senior Day Saturday
Mark Selders

Penn State Hosts #16 Maryland on Senior Day Saturday

Nittany Lions to honor five seniors on Senior Day Presented By The Penn State Alumni Association

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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men’s basketball team hosts #16 Maryland on Senior Day Presented by the Penn State Alumni Association Saturday at noon inside the Bryce Jordan Center. Fans are encouraged to arrive early as the pregame Senior Day ceremony will begin shortly after 11:30 a.m.  

FOLLOW ALONG

OPENING TIPS

IF PENN STATE BEATS #16 MARYLAND

  • Penn State would finish the regular season with a 12-3 record when playing inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
  • The Nittany Lions would earn their second top-20 win of the season.

SCOUTING THE TERRAPINS

  • The 16-ranked Terrapins are 21-7 overall and 11-6 in Big Ten play this season.
  • Maryland has won four of its last five games, but is coming off a 58-55 home loss to Michigan State Wednesday night.
  • The Terps are 3-5 in conference road games this season, compared to their 8-1 record in Big Ten home games.
  • Derik Queen leads a balanced Maryland attack with team-high marks of 15.6 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Four other Terrapins are averaging double-digit points in Ja'Kobi Gillespie (14.9 ppg), Rodney Rice (14.0 ppg), Julian Reese (13.6 ppg) and Selton Miguel (11.7 ppg).

AGAINST MARYLAND

  • Penn State and Maryland meet for the first time since last year's regular-season finale.
  • The Nittany Lions are 13-2 all-time when playing Maryland in Happy Valley. Penn State hasn’t lost a home game to the Terrapins since Feb. 14, 2015.
  • The two teams split last year's regular-season series, with the home team winning both contests.
  • The Nittany Lions beat Maryland 85-69 on Senior Night in the most recent meeting on March 10, 2024. Ace Baldwin Jr. registered a 17-point, 11-assist double-double.

SENIOR DAY PRESENTED BY THE PENN STATE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

  • Penn State will celebrate five seniors Saturday on Senior Day presented by the Penn State Alumni Association:
  • All five seniors have spent the last two years at Penn State and have combined for 2,927 points, 992 rebounds, 671 assists, 355 steals and 332 3-pointers during their time in the Blue & White.

HOME SWEET HAPPY VALLEY

  • Penn State is 11-3 inside the Bryce Jordan Center this season and has won 13 of its last 17 home games in Happy Valley dating back to last season.

Stat

PSU average in BJC games

PPG

87.6

FG%

49.9%

3FG%

36.5%

3FG made per game

8.4

Assists per game

18.3

Turnovers forced per game

16.6

Steals per game

10.1

HIGH OCTANE

  • Penn State is averaging 79.4 points per game, which currently tracks to best the program record for single-season scoring average of 78.7 ppg that was set by the 1954-55 team. The Nittany Lions have scored 80-plus points in 15 games this season.

GETTING TO THE LINE

  • The Nittany Lions are 9-0 this season when making 20+ free throws in a game. Penn State is 6-0 this season when attempting at least 30 foul shots in a contest.

BALANCED ATTACK

  • Five different Penn State players are averaging double-digit points: Ace Baldwin Jr. (14.0 ppg), Yanic Konan Niederhauser (13.0 ppg), Nick Kern Jr. (11.8 ppg), Zach Hicks (11.7 ppg) and Puff Johnson (10.2 ppg).
  • Nine players have scored in double figures, with six different players recording 20-plus point games, in the Nittany Lions' balanced offensive attack. Seven different players have led Penn State in scoring in a game this season.

TURNING DEFENSE INTO OFFENSE

  • Penn State ranks second in the Big Ten in both steals per game (8.3) and turnovers forced per game (14.45).

NATIONAL NUMBERS

  • Penn State players currently rank in the top 25 in the country in a number of statistical categories through games on Feb. 27:

Individual Stat

Value

National Rank

FT% - Ace Baldwin Jr.

93.4%

4

Assists per game – Ace Baldwin Jr.

7.2

6

Steals per game – Ace Baldwin Jr.

2.39

13

Blocks per game – Yanic Konan Niederhauser

2.19

18

INJURY BUG

  • Penn State has been plagued with injuries since the turn of the calendar year, as the Nittany Lions have played each of the last 14 games without at least one of their double-digit scorers.

CLOSE LOSSES

  • Penn State has been within four points in the final two minutes of nine of its 14 losses this season.
  • The Nittany Lions own eight conference losses by six points or fewer this season, the most amongst major conference teams.

PUT ‘EM ON WATCH

NOWHERE NEAR DUNN

  • D’Marco Dunn has turned it up a notch over the last 12 games, including putting together two career-best scoring efforts with 18 points against both Michigan State and Minnesota:

Dunn

First 17 Games

Last 12 Games

PPG

5.2

11.1

FG%

38.1%

50.0%

3FG%

32.4%

44.2%

Minutes/game

16.7

25.8

ONE OF ONE

  • Graduate student Ace Baldwin Jr. is the ONLY active Division I player and one of just five Division I players since the 1947-48 season (77 years) with 1,600+ career points (1,690), 800+ career assists (819) and 300+ career steals (338).
  • Baldwin Jr. is Division I's active career leader in steals (338) and his 819 career assists are third amongst active Division I players. He currently is 16th all-time in career steals in the NCAA record book.

BIG FELLA BURSTING ONTO THE SCENE

  • Yanic Konan Niederhauser, Penn State's mobile and versatile seven-foot forward, is averaging 13.0 points per game, a team-best 6.2 rebounds per game and a Big Ten-best 2.19 blocks per game. The Switzerland native transferred to Penn State ahead of the 2024-25 season following two years at Northern Illinois.

Yanic Konan Niederhauser

PSU (2024-25)

NIU (2022-24)

Points per game

13.0 ppg

5.1 ppg

FG%

61.6%

51.4%

Rebounds per game

6.2 rpg

3.2 rpg

REWRITING HISTORY

  • The Nittany Lions have accomplished the following Penn State milestones through the first 29 games of the season:
    • Finished non-conference play at 10-1, marking just the sixth time since Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1992-93 that the Nittany Lions have finished regular-season non-conference action with one or fewer losses.
    • Big Ten-opening win over #8 Purdue was Penn State's first win over a team ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll since Dec. 2019.
    • Shot 60.7% from the field in win over Nebraska on Feb. 19, the first time shooting 60 FG% against a Big Ten opponent since Jan. 2007.
    • Started the season 6-0 for the first time in 25 years (since the 1999-2000 season). Started the season 8-1 for the first time in 10 years (since the 2014-15 season).
    • Scored 100+ points in back-to-back games for the first time in program history (108 vs. Binghamton, 103 vs. UMBC).
    • Scored 80+ points in six-consecutive games for the first time in program history.
    • Scored 100+ in three games in the same season for just the second time in program history.

FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT

  • Head Coach Mike Rhoades has inked the highest-ranked recruiting class in program history and the 21st-ranked class in the country as three highly-touted prospects signed to join the Nittany Lions during the November early signing period.
  • Penn State's three-member class ranks 21st in the nation per 247 Sports. The three-member class is comprised of Mason Blackwood (Rochester, N.Y.), Justin Houser (Camp Hill, Pa.) and Kayden Mingo (Farmingdale, N.Y.). The three new Nittany Lions join the program as the Class of 2029 and bring accomplished athletic and academic pedigrees to Penn State.

The 2024-25 Penn State men’s basketball season is presented by Highmark Health.