After its first 13 games of the season, the Penn State basketball team is off to a 9-4 start, the best record since 2008-09, when the team went 11-2 out of conference and ended the season winning the NIT.
John Johnson was instrumental in Penn State’s 92-82 comeback victory over lowly Mount St. Mary’s, scoring 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting in his first game for the Blue and White after sitting out all of last season and the first half of this season to comply with the NCAA’s transfer rules.
While the Penn State wrestling program has enjoyed this success, there has been one team that has continued to be a thorn in the Nittany Lions' paw: the Iowa Hawkeyes. This season turned out to be different, however, as the Nittany Lions went into Carver-Hawkeye Arena and won for the first time under Sanderson, taking down the No. 3 Hawkeyes 24-12 in front of over 14,000 fans.
Heading into tonight's national championship match, Penn State had handily swept the Wisconsin Badgers twice in the regular season. Everybody expected another effortless victory for the Nittany Lions in what would be their sixth national title. Instead, Penn State found its hands full as the Badgers looked to be the better of the two teams for much of Saturday's match. Squandered opportunities by Wisconsin and a strong finish by the Nittany Lions led to a 3-1 match victory (25-19, 26-24, 20-25, 25-23) that brings yet another championship home to Happy Valley.
Seven-footer Jordan Dickerson, who had originally been slated to sit out the entire 2013-2014 season due to NCAA transfer rules, is now eligible play as soon as tomorrow against in the Nittany Lions' non-conference finale against Mount St. Mary's, a game that will also feature the Penn State debut of sophomore guard John Johnson, a transfer from Pitt.
Only one team stands in the way of Penn State as the women's volleyball team tries to earn its sixth national title: the Wisconsin Badgers. Here's what you need to know about the championship, taking place tonight at 9:30 p.m.