Penn State men’s basketball’s dream season has continued into 2020.

Pat Chambers’ squad climbed to No. 20 in this week’s AP Top 25 poll — a one-spot jump from its No. 21 ranking last week.

JUST IN: @PennStateMBB moved up one spot to No. 20 in this week's @AP_Top25 poll. pic.twitter.com/UT9IyXsP4U

— Onward State (@OnwardState) January 6, 2020

The Nittany Lions opened the new year with a massive 89-86 victory over Iowa at the Palestra on Saturday afternoon. Penn State trailed the Hawkeyes by as many as eight points down the stretch at the “Cathedral of College Basketball,” but big buckets from Lamar Stevens and a high-flying finish for Mike Watkins in the final minutes helped the squad leave West Philadelphia victorious.

Stevens and Co. now hold a 2-1 record in Big Ten play, leaving the Nittany Lions tied with four other teams for second place in the conference. Penn State joins conference rivals No. 8 Michigan State, No. 11 Ohio State, No. 12 Maryland, and No. 19 Michigan in this week’s poll.

Penn State has officially been ranked in the AP Top 25 poll for an entire month and currently sits at No. 21 in this week’s Coaches Poll. The Nittany Lions are ranked between No. 19 Michigan and No. 21 Memphis in the first AP poll of 2020.

This is the highest ranking that the Nittany Lions have received in the AP Top 25 since their impressive 1995-96 campaign in which they finished with a 21-6 overall record and earned an NCAA Tournament berth. Penn State won its first 13 games that season and climbed to as high as No. 9 in the AP poll.

The Nittany Lions will try to continue their historic season when they take on Rutgers (11-3, 2-1 Big Ten) at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, January 7 in Piscataway, New Jersey.