With the new year on the horizon, Penn State men’s basketball is set to wrap up its non-conference portion of the regular season with a matchup at 2 p.m. on Friday, December 29, against Rider at the Bryce Jordan Center. The Nittany Lions currently sit at a .500 record of 6-6 and are 1-1 in conference play.

Ahead of the team’s battle with the Broncs, head coach Mike Rhoades spoke to the media Wednesday afternoon to discuss topics ranging from the continued great play of Kanye Clary to the blue and white’s longstanding rebounding trouble.

On Penn State’s Recent Play

The Nittany Lions are coming off a win at home over Le Monye, and while they pulled out a victory over the Dolphins, it wasn’t an all-encompassing win. Penn State shot 39.7% from the field and 34.4% from three, and if it wasn’t for a dominant first half, the Nittany Lions could’ve been handed another loss. Rhoades discussed how the team needs to put together better runs through 40 minutes of play and begin to play a more complete game.

“I think we’ve done a pretty good job since the beginning of the year of taking care of the basketball, but we got to get that 12-2 run or that 10-0 run,” he said. “I just think at times we’ve had some really good possessions but not finishing at the rim to continue those runs and then just I think we take our foot off the gas sometimes. We just got to continue to learn to keep playing through everything.”

On Looming Big Ten Competition

After the final buzzer against Rider, the Nittany Lions begin a long 18-game journey into Big Ten conference play, in which they’ll challenge #11 Illinois and top-ranked Purdue. It will be a tough road for the Nittany Lions, and while they’re not playing at the same level as some of the other teams in their conference, they still feel they can compete with anyone. Rhoades spoke about the type of mindset he’s trying to instill into his players to prepare them for the tests ahead.

“Are we at times smaller or mismatched here not to our advantage? Yeah. I mean, that’s sort of what happens in a first-year program, but I don’t care about that,” he said. “I want our guys to have an edge to go in the game that when we went down to Maryland, nobody thought we could win a game, and we had a chance to win and put in overtime and give ourselves a chance to win a Big Ten game on the road. That’s got to be our swag, and that’s got to be our mentality.”

On Team Aggression

Pace of play and aggression have been integral parts of Rhoades’ coaching identity throughout his career. A high volume of steals, trap plays, and preparedness to make any shot are crucial to Rhoades’ style, and he always emphasizes that his guys play hard.

While the Nittany Lions have mostly succeeded at that this season, many times Penn State tends to fall away from the strategy and allows teams to remain in games. Rhoades talked about how sticking to original game plans can only continue to make the group a more whole team.

“I think when other guys are shooting the ball well and we’re being aggressive getting downhill, I just think it’s a wildfire…it spreads to everybody,” he said. “We got to make sure everybody is being more aggressive and ready to shoot the ball and drive it to get to the foul line. When we do that, and we’re consistent in doing that, we’re just so much better.”

On Kanye Clary’s Great Start

Kanye Clary has been one of the best players for the Nittany Lions this season. In just his second season at Penn State, and first as a starter, Clary leads the team in points per game with 17.3 and has been the leading scorer for the Nittany Lions in 10 of 12 contests this season.

Rhoades spoke positively about the way Clary has slid into his role and how his coachable game is refreshing as a coach.

“I’m really proud of Kanye. He’s really improved since we’ve been here,” Rhoades said. “I think what has helped Kanye is he doesn’t have to look over his shoulder if he does push the issue or misses a shot. We don’t play that way. We play with great freedom. We want to give him the green light.”

On Improving Rebounding

Rebounding has been a significant issue for Penn State. It currently ranks 12th in the Big Ten in margin of rebounds per game. Some players aren’t fulfilling their assignments in the game, and Rhoades chatted about what he and the rest of the coaching staff have been doing to improve the disparity.

“You got to call guys out about it, and it’s not personal as much as it is ‘you have a specific job to do,'” he said. “Some guys don’t box out as quickly or don’t find the ball quick enough. Some guys box their guys out but don’t look at the ball, so it’s a combination of everything.”