#160 R.P.I. Penn.State @ #19 R.P.I. Virginia Tech: 

Virginia Tech men’s basketball returns to the gridiron, I mean to the hardwood; Tuesday night on national Telly vs. the Happy Valley hoops crew.

The Hokies face a 2 up and 1 down Pennsylvania State squad that is really only 8-seconds or one shot (OT, L to Seton Hall) removed from being a perfected 3-nil. From scouting and studying itself, although I do not know if P.S.U. is a great hoops club? I do know they are not a half-bad basketball team. And I also know that they have the best individual baller (F, Seth Lundy) out on the court at their disposal. Nevertheless, what you wanna know is… who is gonna win this one and by how much, rights? So, read on, to finds… out!

Penn.State (interim) Head Coach: James A. Ferry Jr.: Age=53, 314–265 (.542) overall, and 2-1 @P.s.u. Has a rep’ for offensive-coordination and culturalization.
Pushes tempo’ for spot-up 3’s as his first option on O.
$600,000.oo (with incentives/bonuses).

Playing career
1985–1986 NYIT
1987–1990 Keene State

Baller Ferry played one year at New York Tech before transferring to Keene State, where he posted a double-digit scoring average for his career. Ferry led the Owls in scoring as a junior and was team captain as a senior. The son of a New York City transit police officer, he earned his undergraduate degree in public safety science.

Little-whistle Ferry Jr. entered the coaching ranks as an assistant at his alma mater, Keene State College, in Keene, New Hampshire, following his graduation in 1990.

He then served as an assistant coach at Bentley College for seven years where he helped the Falcons win the 1992-93 Northeast 10 regular-season championship and earn a trip to the NC2A Tournament.

In 1998-99, Plymouth State hired Ferry to guide its program and saw the first-year head coach compile 22 wins, the highest single-season total in the Panthers’ history, a mark that still stands. The Panthers captured a share of the Little East Conference title and played in the ECAC New England Tournament championship game.

Ferry returned to his home state to lead Adelphi University, compiling an 82-11 record in three seasons from 1999-2002. His 1999-2000 team advanced to the NCAA Div. II Sweet Sixteen and his 2000-01 and 2001-02 teams made back-to-back trips to the NCAA Div. II Elite Eight. The 2001 squad claimed a No. 1 with 31-straight wins and in his two final two seasons, the program had only four losses combined. He was recognized as the USBWA Basketball Times Division II Coach of the Year following the 2000-01 season and was the NIT/MBWA Division II Coach of the Year in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

Currently the interim head coach at Penn State, and formerly the head men’s basketball coach at Duquesne. Prior to Duquesne, Ferry spent 10 seasons as head coach at Long Island, 3 seasons at Adelphi, and 1 season at Plymouth State. (did have a pretty good play-off record at the same as you and your committee of one can ratify above).

Following the resignation of Penn State coach Pat Chambers on October 21, 2020, Ferry was named interim head coach at Penn State. (did I mention the: interim tag, yets?)

(I’ma not as sure on this part… mmm-k) one website said: Big Papi Ferry and his wife, Kelly, are the parents of four children: Victoria, twins Hannah and James, and Leo. And yet the P.s.u. sites lists
not a single solitary thing, personally. So there you go… (St.Victoria, bless!)

Penn.State at a glance:

• 14th most swipes/game!!
• 18th most 3-pointers made!
• 44th on the offensive glass.
• 21st best in FTA makes!
• 55th in scoring O!
• 261st in fouls ‘whistled’ against.
• (that’s P.s.u.’s lowest/worst metric. Everything else is average to B+)

Returning Starters=3

P.S.U. Strengths:

• One, #1… Seth Lundy: a 6′6″, 220 lb., super-Soph’ scorer. Who literally really did impress upon breaking-tape, as this kid’s B.M.I. is twitchy, bursting, and pretty much max’ed-out. Don’t see this kinda striations this side of the gridiron. (slightly/vaguely) … reminded me a bit of a novice tri-level Adrian Dantley. Albeit with more physical ‘pop’. This is a 220v playar stacked-up in a 110v body with a few lantern-batteries to spare. 23 ppg does not suck. And it makes Lundy the alpha baller on the Tuesday night court. Seth also leads P.s.u. in swat-team work with (1.5 bpg), he nearly leads in 3-ball-percentage (43%) and his 86% FTA’s only adds to his nearly stellar output efficiency. Did I mention the efficacious efficiency, yet? As there is very little in the way of wasted motion -much less wasted sets or plays- here. This from the:  **** (four-star) VHT (very highly touted) Philly City Baller of the Year (a good look historically), and only a 1-time Keystone State champion baller. Where he played better in the Pennsylvania State Tourney play-offs, just the very same as he played bigger in intra-league Big-10 ball last season. Lundy also mixes in 4.3 rpg and a swipe and a paltry 55% from the floor! Lindy’s says Lundy has leadership-traits and is “ultra-competitive”. Funny how most (legit) leaders who actually stop arrows and lead from the front, are {sic: ‘ultra competitive’}. As this Seth is a Pro’. His all-’round game says so… the only Q&A is… does it say export or domestic? (BONUS: points for the twist-top with the Icky-Crane beard point too, this is a wicked cool look).
• Final year, 6′9″, 240 lb. Four, John Harrar is/was a big-time D-1, De and Te, pigskin recruit. The 20 ppg and 10 rpg in high school roundball were thought to be secondary to the oblong spheroid’s primacy to some. 7.4 ppg and a team-leading 8.4 rpg on a bunny/put-back savvy 69% from the floor, with 80% FTA’s which pretty well splits the competing balls’ vote here. Still yet, this is a tenacious hard-willing, hard-working glue-guy; both on and off-court so the ‘whispers’ say. And they could and do say worse in the modern-era of play.

  

• Jamari Wheeler is a: 6′1″, 170 lb. defensive stopper of a lockdown One on the perimeter. He drops you 8.0 ppg and is a smart second-place on the backboard with 5.0 rpg while leading the way in dimes dropped at 4.3 apg. Plus 42% when dialing long-distance and you have a solid if unspectacular all-around very well-seasoned baller on your hands. Did I mention the elite defense or the reigning Big-10 Defensive Player of the Year Award, yet? As Wheeler is the Qb turned Fs of the P.s.u. hoops team to be triple-double sure here with a useful 2.22:1 assists:turnovers ratio. (though more 2020-2021 scoring was the hope here as well). Which seems outta character for a team-first guy all the way back through his willingness to do the hard-things well per his high school vitals. Which showcases enough O and more than enough D. (OBSERVE: this is a virtual 1 outta 2 or 50% FT-shooter, might wanna foul #5 at least once or twice if this one goes close, late).

P.S.U. Weaknesses:

• The Nitty Lions are missing 18 ppg scorer: (F, Lamar Stevens); also missing his 8 rpg as one of their better Frontcouters ever.
• Ditto two more at least part-time Frontcourt starters gone with just beneath 20 ppg and 10 rpg combined between ’em.
• Mo’ was expected from top-recruit Caleb Dorsey than 2 ppg. As this is a rarified five, that’s (5) position Baltic Ave. man’s Magic Johnson Point-S/F redux of lessor sorts.
• That’s about it… this team only really needs 1 mo’ guy down low.

Nit.Lions Bench: (depth=4)

Sam Sessoms is a 6′, 187 lb., third-year One also by way of Philly City ball by way of little ole D-1 (actually) Birmingham. Where he did a pretty fair to middling job of offending as a scoring Point-G with the emphasis on points; plural. And he also did a lotta flexing of his lowercase biceps, so there is that, too. Tho’ you do not lead your Division-One conference (American East Conference) in scoring just ’cause you suck. As I’ma pretty sure we’d welcome his just south of 20 ppg to the 24060 too. Currently netting a career-high 41% 3-ball with 81% FT’s good for a somewhat ball-sharing reduced 13 ppg. Tho’ hommie also averages right at 5 rpg and likewise 5 apg and that’s not half-bad-work in relief if you can get it. UPDATE: …NC2A suits just ruled Sammy ineligible then: actually, eligible again for the rest of the season! Wow! Dang… major subtraction gone back attcha to a major addition here folks. This from a pure outburst inner-city scorer, who averaged just at 30 ppg and was known for high 40’s to mid 55’s when he really got it individually cranked all the way high school ups!

 6′8″, 240 listed lbs. P/F and Sr. year baller Trent Buttrick is the mane frontcourt sub’ here. Was a scholastic double-double machine with a shot-stopping rep’ when he was not flirting with a vocational school gridiron career. Chilly start this season thus far… what with 1 ppg on 25% shooting. Tho’ the 4.5 rpg is more the norm’ here. As Butt’ is not a collegiate offensive stalwart. He’s more of a rock-solid role-player type who shuts his mouf and knows his, role.
🎼”Doin’ th’ butt!”🎶

Illation, conclusion(s) and OPT digits:

Number of Lions who could roar @Tech=4 and change.

the takeaway:
The takeaway here is… Pennsylvania State is a pretty good men’s hoops team gents.

They however are trapped (pardon the pun) in a pretty dang top-heavy Big-10 hoops conference for their pretty good troubles.

Whereby most years they’d prolly slot northwardly of where they will this year.

---

As this is a post-season team of some caliber, the only question is what caliber? Not real sure I’d call them bubblelicious… although they may just be N.I.T.astic!

As they have enough offense -even in the Big-10- to not finish spring broke.

 ***

Our handy-dandy friend the so-called Forum Guide of Graham Houston fame is calling for a… and out-of-conference (OOC) strangely enough… a 14-point Nittany Lion Tech Triumph in this one. As P.S.U. did noticeably better vs. the rat-line Keydets than we did. Quite a bit, actually.

The annualized year-to-date vitals say that… VeeTee is up +7% in shooting percentage margin (pretty close to evenly split between O & D); VeeTee is up a smaller +2% in 3-point percentage margin (evenly O & D split), and yet -although P.s.u. is positive on the fiberglass, VeeTee is positively +4 caroms better in rebounding margin year-to-date.

The most recent 5-game metrics say that… in shooting percentage margin, in 3-point percentage margin and in rebounding margin… or rather they are all conspiring to say… “ask us again in 80-minutes of play”.

P.s.u. is up a close-game useful 5% at the charity stripe for the year.
VeeTee is +3 in R&R in jus the last week more/less.
VeeTee is a 1.oo host; whereas  is o-o as a guest.
(i.e. we are their 1st roadie this season).

The Call…

No.144 Net Ranking P.s.u. @ no.59 Net Ranking VeeTee:

Alrighty, it is rivalry week on the other Revenue Sports side… and someone needs to pry their Eyes open and finish the Clemson game-tape up right as rain to boot.

Nonetheless, this is a pretty good out-of-conference (O.O.C.) test.

And frankly our recent horse-racing so-called: “bounce” of a Virginia Military effort won’t result in a getting to 5-nil vs. a P5 that slots where P.s.u. rightfully does.

–oOo–

As Penn.State has the best player and the best frontcourter on the hardwood all rolled into one. (or into a “Three” or S/F in this particular case).

Accordingly, Mike Young needs to age Mr. Lundy out here.
Go right at him early on O and see if you can draw a favorable homecourt ‘tweet’.

Ditto timeouts and R&R spacing.
As this game has scoreboard or TV suits friendly pacing written all over it.

P.s.u. will put the biscuit in the basket and it will take at least 70-75 to tame these Lions over in a frosty New River Valley.

As the first team to Joe Green’s number (#75) wins this one.

Though make no mistake men, VeeTee is no heavy favorite here.

🏀💯🏀

 

(67% confidence interval)
Virginia Tech=77, Pennsylvania State=73

please support the VT F.C.A.!

“LETS GO!”

“Hokies!”

 bourbonstreet**