Weak Non-conference Schedule Heightens NC State Game Importance!
A 6-1 start to the season has Penn State basketball fans dreaming of the team’s first trip to the NCAA tournament under head coach Patrick Chambers. But unless the Nittany Lions cut down the nets at the Big Ten tournament in Madison Square Garden, they’ll need a strong enough resume to earn a bid come March.
Playing in the Big Ten provides plenty of opportunities to pick up quality wins, but the selection committee always looks at a team’s non-conference schedule. With Penn State, there’s not much to see.
Penn State has played only two games against Power Five opponents, with both coming in the Legends Classic at the Barclays Center. The Lions dismantled a woeful Pittsburgh team, and hung with No. 9 Texas A&M until late in the second half.
Wednesday’s matchup against unranked North Carolina State will be the last time Penn State plays a quality opponent outside of the Big Ten this season. Does that make an NCAA tournament birth impossible? Absolutely not. Could it come back to haunt the Nittany Lions? Without question.
Few expect Penn State to transform from a below .500 team to Big Ten champions in one year. Instead, the Lions could find themselves on the bubble at the end of the season.
Every bubble team has an argument for why they should make the tournament, so the selection committee has to find a reason why certain teams should not. A weak non-conference schedule is often one of the first issues to be raised.
Penn State can render all of this moot with a strong enough performance in conference. But again, no one should expect the Lions to dominate in the Big Ten.
If Penn State wins the remainder of its non-conference games, it can at least claim that it took care of business. But the Lions do not want to find themselves sitting at home on selection Sunday with their best non-conference win coming against a last place Pitt team in the ACC.
NC State already beat Arizona, and will have the chance to pick up more impressive victories against ACC foes. It wouldn’t be much, but a victory in Raleigh could be enough to push Penn State over the edge and into the NCAA tournament.
Penn State will need to lean on past experiences this Wednesday. The sophomore core of Tony Carr, Mike Watkins and Lamar Stevens now know how difficult it is to win on the road after faltering as freshmen. Carr, Shep Garner and the rest of the squad will need to stay poised and take care of the basketball against the Wolfpack’s full court press.
It is difficult to blame Penn State for not scheduling tougher opponents. The Lions have yet to prove that they can beat quality teams. Last year, they fell to Albany, George Mason and Pitt.
The NC State game is a part of the ACC/Big Ten challenge, which means Penn State did not schedule it. The Legends Classic is the only early test that the Nittany Lions sought out themselves.
A large part of being a good team is simply winning the games that you’re supposed to. Consistency comes with experience, and the Lions appear poised to take that step this year.
A win on Wednesday adds a layer of credibility to Penn State’s tournament resume. A loss leaves the Lions without a quality non-conference win, and no future opportunities to pick one up.