# 2016–17 Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team

The 2016–17 Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team represented Pennsylvania State University in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by head coach Pat Chambers, in his sixth season with the team. They played their home games at the Bryce Jordan Center in University Park, Pennsylvania and were members of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 15–18, 6–12 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for 12th place. As the No. 13 seed in the Big Ten tournament, they beat Nebraska in the first round before losing to Michigan State in the second round.

## Previous season

The Nittany Lions finished the 2015–16 season with a record of 16–16, 7–11 in Big Ten play to finish in tenth place in conference. They lost to Ohio State in the second round of the Big Ten tournament.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Devin Foster | 3 | G | 6'2" | 205 | Senior | Dayton, OH | Graduated |
| Donovan Jack | 5 | F | 6'9" | 210 | Senior | Reading, PA | Graduated |
| Brandon Taylor | 10 | F | 6'7" | 225 | Senior | Tabernacle, NJ | Graduated |
| Samuel Halle | 11 | G | 6'0" | 185 | Junior | Springfield, VA | Graduated |
| Jordan Dickerson | 32 | C | 7'1" | 245 | Senior | Brooklyn, NY | Graduated |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Satchel Pierce | 32 | F | 7'0" | 255 | Junior | Barberton, OH | Transferred from Virginia Tech. Under NCAA transfer rules, Pierce will have to sit out in the 2016–17 season. Will have two years of eligibility left. |

### 2016 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Tony Carr #7 PG | Philadelphia, PA | Roman Catholic High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Nov 12, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Joe Hampton #31 PF | Hyattsville, MD | Oak Hill Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 265 lb (120 kg) | Nov 12, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Lamar Stevens #16 SF | Philadelphia, PA | Roman Catholic High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Nov 12, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Nazeer Bostick SG | Philadelphia, PA | Roman Catholic High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Nov 12, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 2, 2016. ||||||

## Personnel
### Coaching staff

| Position | Name | Year | Alma mater |
| Head coach | Patrick Chambers | 2011 | Philadelphia University (1994) |
| Associate head coach | Keith Urgo | 2011 | Fairfield University (2002) |
| Assistant coach | Dwayne Anderson | 2013 | Villanova University (2009) |
| Assistant coach | Ross Condon | 2011 | Villanova University (2007) |
| Director of Basketball Operations | David Caporaletti | 2011 | Philadelphia University (1993) |
| On campus recruiting coordinator | Nicholas Colella | 2015 | Penn State (2013) |
| Athletic trainer | Jon Salazer | 2001 | Penn State (1993) |
| Director of player development | Ryan Devlin | 2013 | Philadelphia University (2005) |
| Strength and conditioning coach | Greg Miskinis | 2009 | Penn State (2008) |
| Graduate Manager | Evann Baker | 2015 | Quinnipiac University (2011) |
| Graduate Manager | Kevin Hacke | 2015 | West Virginia University (2013) |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| Nov 4, 2016* 6:00 pm, BTN+ | | Lock Haven | W 91–65 | | Bryce Jordan Center (4,388) University Park, PA |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| Nov 11, 2016* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Albany Hall of Fame Tip Off | L 81–87 | 0–1 | Bryce Jordan Center (6,230) University Park, PA |
| Nov 13, 2016* 6:00 pm, BTN | | Duquesne | W 82–74 | 1–1 | Bryce Jordan Center (5,856) University Park, PA |
| Nov 15, 2016* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Grand Canyon Hall of Fame Tip Off | W 85–76 | 2–1 | Bryce Jordan Center (5,678) University Park, PA |
| Nov 19, 2016* 12:30 pm, ESPN3 | | vs. No. 1 Duke Hall of Fame Tip Off semifinals | L 68–78 | 2–2 | Mohegan Sun Arena Uncasville, CT |
| Nov 20, 2016* 3:30 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. No. 24 Cincinnati Hall of Fame Tip Off consolation | L 50–71 | 2–3 | Mohegan Sun Arena Uncasville, CT |
| Nov 23, 2016* 7:00 pm, BTN | | Colgate | W 72–59 | 3–3 | Bryce Jordan Center (5,112) University Park, PA |
| Nov 26, 2016* 4:00 pm | | at George Washington | W 74–68 | 4–3 | Charles E. Smith Center (2,378) Washington, D.C. |
| Nov 29, 2016* 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | Georgia Tech ACC–Big Ten Challenge | W 67–60 | 5–3 | Bryce Jordan Center (6,032) University Park, PA |
| Dec 3, 2016* 5:00 pm, BTN+ | | Wright State | W 72–50 | 6–3 | Bryce Jordan Center (6,227) University Park, PA |
| Dec 7, 2016* 7:00 pm, BTN | | George Mason | L 66–85 | 6–4 | Bryce Jordan Center (5,694) University Park, PA |
| Dec 10, 2016* 2:30 pm, CBSSN | | vs. Pittsburgh Never Forget Tribute Classic | L 73–81 | 6–5 | Prudential Center (16,165) Newark, NJ |
| Dec 18, 2016* 11:00 am, FS1 | | vs. St. John's Madison Square Garden Holiday Festival | W 92–76 | 7–5 | Madison Square Garden (8,200) New York City, NY |
| Dec 21, 2016* 5:00 pm, BTN+ | | Morgan State | W 96–55 | 8–5 | Bryce Jordan Center (4,009) University Park, PA |
| Big Ten regular season ||||||
| Dec 27, 2016 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Northwestern | L 77–87 | 8–6 (0–1) | Bryce Jordan Center (5,811) University Park, PA |
| Jan 1, 2017 2:30 pm, ESPNU | | at Rutgers | W 60–47 | 9–6 (1–1) | Louis Brown Athletic Center (6,079) Piscataway, NJ |
| Jan 4, 2017 8:30 pm, BTN | | at Michigan | L 69–72 | 9–7 (1–2) | Crisler Center (11,385) Ann Arbor, MI |
| Jan 7, 2017 1:00 pm, ESPN | | vs. Michigan State Palestra Big Ten Showcase | W 72–63 | 10–7 (2–2) | Palestra (8,722) Philadelphia, PA |
| Jan 14, 2017 12:00 pm, ESPNU | | No. 24 Minnesota | W 52–50 | 11–7 (3–2) | Bryce Jordan Center (11,759) University Park, PA |
| Jan 18, 2017 7:00 pm, BTN | | Indiana | L 75–78 | 11–8 (3–3) | Bryce Jordan Center (7,818) University Park, PA |
| Jan 21, 2017 12:00 pm, BTN | | at No. 21 Purdue | L 52–77 | 11–9 (3–4) | Mackey Arena (14,804) West Lafayette, IN |
| Jan 24, 2017 9:00 pm, BTN | | at No. 15 Wisconsin | L 55–82 | 11–10 (3–5) | Kohl Center (17,287) Madison, WI |
| Jan 28, 2017 4:30 pm, BTN | | Illinois | W 71–67 | 12–10 (4–5) | Bryce Jordan Center (10,202) University Park, PA |
| Feb 1, 2017 6:30 pm, BTN | | at Indiana | L 102–110 $^{3OT}$ | 12–11 (4–6) | Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| Feb 4, 2017 1:00 pm, ESPNU | | Rutgers | L 68–70 | 12–12 (4–7) | Bryce Jordan Center (9,529) University Park, PA |
| Feb 7, 2017 6:00 pm, BTN | | No. 21 Maryland | W 70–64 | 13–12 (5–7) | Bryce Jordan Center (7,063) University Park, PA |
| Feb 11, 2017 2:00 pm, BTN | | at Illinois | W 83–70 | 14–12 (6–7) | State Farm Center (13,010) Champaign, IL |
| Feb 14, 2017 9:00 pm, BTN | | at Nebraska | L 66–82 | 14–13 (6–8) | Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,642) Lincoln, NE |
| Feb 21, 2017 6:00 pm, BTN | | No. 14 Purdue | L 70–74 $^{OT}$ | 14–14 (6–9) | Bryce Jordan Center (7,505) University Park, PA |
| Feb 25, 2017 3:00 pm, BTN | | at Minnesota | L 71–81 | 14–15 (6–10) | Williams Arena (14,625) Minneapolis, MN |
| Feb 28, 2017 8:30 pm, BTN | | Ohio State | L 70–71 | 14–16 (6–11) | Bryce Jordan Center (7,343) University Park, PA |
| Mar 5, 2017 1:00 pm, BTN | | at Iowa | L 79–90 | 14–17 (6–12) | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (15,400) Iowa City, IA |
| Big Ten tournament ||||||
| Mar 8, 2017 4:30 pm, ESPN2 | (13) | vs. (12) Nebraska First round | W 76–67 $^{OT}$ | 15–17 | Verizon Center Washington, D.C. |
| Mar 9, 2017 2:25 pm, BTN | (13) | vs. (5) Michigan State Second round | L 51–78 | 15–18 | Verizon Center Washington, D.C. |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||
Source