NCAA college basketball correspondent and Big Ten analyst Andy Katz named Penn State men’s basketball his No. 9 “sleeper pick” on his most underrated teams list.

Katz noted that the veteran backcourt of Myles Dread, Jalen Pickett, and Seth Lundy could lead the Nittany Lions to an NCAA Tournament ticket. He also mentioned the stout defensive unit that head coach Micah Shrewsberry put on the court last season.

“I think Penn State could be on that buffer, the bubble right there, and on the edge of potentially getting a bid,” Katz said.

The Nittany Lions have only made nine total NCAA Tournament appearances and haven’t punched their official ticket to March Madness since 2011 under then-head coach Ed DeChellis. The team lost to Temple in the first round.

Penn State finished last season with 14-17 overall and 7-13 within conference play. Since then, Shrewsberry has secured two of the highest-ranking recruiting classes in program history heading into the upcoming season.

The Nittany Lions will open their non-conference slate against Winthrop at 7 p.m. on Monday, November 7. Penn State will jump into conference play two months later at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, December 7, against Michigan State.