UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Big Ten play has arrived for the 8-1 Penn State men’s basketball team as the Nittany Lions are set to travel to Indiana for their conference opener Tuesday night. Tipoff from Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall is slated for 8:30 p.m. and the game will air nationally on FS1.
FOLLOW ALONG
- TV: FS1 – Kevin Kugler (pxp) & Steve Smith (analyst)
- RADIO: Penn State Sports Network – Steve Jones (pxp) & Dick Jerardi (analyst)
- NATIONAL RADIO: SiriusXM Ch. 386 & SXM App Ch. 976
- LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
- GAME NOTES: Penn State Notes
OPENING TIPS
- The Nittany Lions tip off Big Ten play with a trip to Assembly Hall to face Indiana Tuesday night.
- Penn State is off to an 8-1 start to the season for the second-straight year. It's the first time the Nittany Lions have started 8-1 or better in back-to-back seasons since 1994-95 and 1995-96.
- Guard Kayden Mingo is the only freshman in the country averaging 15+ ppg, 4+ apg, 4+ rpg and 2+ spg.
- Mingo (15.0 ppg) leads five Nittany Lions averaging double-figure points. Freddie Dilione V (13.2 ppg), Melih Tunca (12.8 ppg), Josh Reed (10.6 ppg) and Ivan Jurić (10.6 ppg) follow.
IF PENN STATE BEATS INDIANA
- Penn State’s 9-1 start to the season would be its best since the 2014-15 team started 12-1.
- The Nittany Lions would earn a road win in Bloomington for just the fifth time in program history.
- Penn State would win its Big Ten opener for the second-straight year.
SCOUTING THE HOOSIERS
- Indiana is 7-2 on the season and 0-1 in Big Ten play. The Hoosiers started the season 7-0, but have since dropped their last two games, a 64-73 road loss at Minnesota on Dec. 3 and a 78-87 neutral site loss to #6 Louisville on Saturday.
- The Hoosiers are in their first season under head coach Darian DeVries, who came to Indiana after a one-year stint as the leader of West Virginia.
- Indiana is 6-0 in home games this season.
- Tucker DeVries leads five Hoosiers in double figures with a team-best 17.8 points per game. Lamar Wilkerson (16.0 ppg), Tayton Conerway (11.8 ppg), Reed Bailey (10.3 ppg) and Sam Alexis (10.0 ppg) follow.
AGAINST INDIANA
- Penn State and Indiana meet for the only time this regular season Tuesday night in Bloomington.
- The Hoosiers have won the last three meetings after Penn State won the previous four matchups. Indiana swept last year's regular-season series, earning a 77-71 win at The Palestra in January before taking an 83-78 victory at Assembly Hall in February.
- Penn State is 4-24 all-time when playing in Bloomington, with the most recent win coming on Feb. 3, 2024 during Mike Rhoades' first season at the helm.
B1G TIME
- Big Ten play begins Tuesday night for the Nittany Lions as Penn State travels to take on Indiana at Assembly Hall.
- Penn State is 8-25 all-time in Big Ten Conference openers. The Nittany Lions took down #8 Purdue, 81-70, in last season's conference opener in Happy Valley.
- The Nittany Lions open Big Ten play on the road for the 12th time in the last 17 years. The last time the Nittany Lions won their conference opener on the road was Dec. 2, 2017, when Penn State traveled to Iowa and earned a 77-73 win.
8-1
- Penn State is off to an 8-1 start to the season for the second-straight year, marking the first time since 1994-95 & 1995-96 that the Nittany Lions have started back-to-back seasons 8-1 or better.
- The Nittany Lions began the year 5-0 before dropping their first game of the season on Nov. 22 against Providence, 65-77. Penn State has since bounced back with its three highest-scoring games of the season, putting up back-to-back 90-plus point efforts in wins over Sacred Heart (90-59) and Boston University (96-87) and following with an 87-76 victory over Campbell.
DISCIPLINED
- Penn State's young squad has shown tremendous discipline as the Nittany Lions lead the country in fewest turnovers per game (8.2). The Nittany Lions committed just three turnovers on Nov. 25 vs. Boston University, the fewest turnovers Penn State has surrendered in a game since Dec. 22, 2022.
- Penn State's young team also ranks sixth in the country in fewest fouls per game (13.4).
HEATING UP
- Since suffering its first loss of the season on Nov. 22, the Penn State offense has heated up over the last three games. The Nittany Lions scored 90-plus in back-to-back games vs. Boston University and Sacred Heart, marking the first time that Penn State scored 90-plus in back-to-back games since opening the 2024-25 season with three-straight 90-plus point efforts.
|
Stat |
Last 3 Games |
First 6 Games |
|
Points per game |
91.0 |
79.2 |
|
FG% |
54.5% |
49.0% |
|
3FG% |
41.7% |
36.0% |
|
Steals per game |
11.0 |
7.0 |
NATIONAL NUMBERS
- The Nittany Lions currently rank in the top 30 in the country in a number of statistical categories (rankings listed thru games on Dec. 6):
|
Team Stat |
Value |
National Rank |
|
Fewest turnovers/game |
8.2 |
1 |
|
Fewest fouls/game |
13.4 |
6 |
|
Turnover margin |
5.9 |
8 |
|
Assist-to-turnover ratio |
1.81 |
18 |
|
FG% |
50.8% |
29 |
|
Individual Stat |
Value |
National Rank |
|
Assist-to-turnover ratio – Kayden Mingo |
4.22 |
15 |
DEPTH ON DISPLAY
- The Nittany Lions have showcased their depth through the first nine games of the season, as Penn State's 33.0 bench points per game ranks second in the Big Ten and is a top-50 mark in the nation.
- The Penn State bench has outscored the opponent bench by an eye-popping total of 297-144 through nine games this season.
ONE OF ONE
- Rookie guard Kayden Mingo is the ONLY freshman in the country averaging 15+ points (15.0 ppg), 4+ assists (4.2 apg), 4+ rebounds (4.0 rpg) and 2+ steals (2.1 spg) per game through games on Dec. 6.
DYNAMIC ROOKIE DUO
- Penn State is one of just four schools in Division I to have two freshmen both averaging 12.5 or more points per game through games on Dec. 6.
- Penn State: Kayden Mingo (15.0 ppg) & Melih Tunca (12.8 ppg)
- Illinois: David Mirkovic (13.8 ppg) & Keaton Wagler (13.8 ppg)
- Arkansas: Darius Acuff Jr. (17.4 ppg) & Maleek Thomas (16.9 ppg)
- Portland: Timo George (13.6 ppg) & Joel Foxwell (13.2 ppg)
BURSTING ONTO THE SCENE
- Rookie Kayden Mingo is the highest scoring freshman in the Big Ten and he leads the Nittany Lions in points (15.0 ppg), assists (4.2 apg) and steals (2.1 spg) while ranking third in rebounds (4.0 rpg) through the first nine games of the season. He has scored in double figures in eight of nine games, including two 20-plus point efforts. He collected a single-game program record-tying eight steals against Sacred Heart on Nov. 29. His 4.22 assist-to-turnover ratio is a top-15 mark in the country.
- Mingo, the highest-ranked recruit in program history, was named an ESPN Top 50 Impact Newcomer in late October. He was ranked as the No. 34 recruit nationally per 247Sports & No. 39 recruit nationally per ESPN out of high school. He was named the 2025 New York Gatorade Player of the Year following standout senior season at Long Island Lutheran.
STEADY FREDDIE
- Redshirt junior Freddie Dilione V, Penn State's only returning starter from a season ago, has been a consistent presence for the Nittany Lions thus far this season.
- Dilione is averaging 13.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game with just nine total turnovers in 231 minutes of playing time. His 13.2 points per game ranks second on the team.
- He has scored in double figures in seven games this season, including a career-best 22 points and nine rebounds against Providence on Nov. 22.
OH MY MELIH
- Istanbul, Turkey native Melih Tunca has been on fire to start the season, scoring in double figures in eight of nine games while shooting 54.2 percent (39-72) from the field and 45.0 percent (9-20) from 3-point range.
- Tunca ranks third on the squad in points (12.8 ppg) and second in assists (3.8 apg).
JUMP FOR JOSH
- Senior Josh Reed was relied upon as a key defensive player in his three seasons at Cincinnati, averaging just 2.8 points per game through 97 career games with the Bearcats, but has made a massive offensive jump since transferring to Penn State for the 2025-26 season.
- Reed is averaging 10.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game through nine games this season while shooting 51.6 percent from the field. He has scored in double figures in five games this season after coming to Penn State with just seven career double-digit scoring games through his three seasons at Cincinnati.
BIG START FOR THE BIG FELLA
- Freshman Ivan Jurić leads the team with a stellar 71.4 (35-49) field goal percentage while averaging 10.6 points and a team-best 4.3 rebounds per game. Jurić owns five double-digit scoring efforts and is coming off a career-best 16-point performance against Campbell last Tuesday.
NEW-LOOK NITTANY LIONS
- The new-look Nittany Lions feature 10 new players this season.
- Penn State returns just 14.6 percent of points, 11.0 percent of rebounds, 12.5 percent of assists and 15.5 percent of minutes played from last season in its three returners - Freddie Dilione V, Eli Rice and Dominick Stewart.
- The Nittany Lion roster is the 10th-most inexperienced roster in Division I per Bart Torvik's experience metric. The Penn State roster features one senior, two juniors, two sophomores and eight freshmen.
UP NEXT
- Penn State hosts #7 Michigan State in the Nittany Lions Big Ten home opener Saturday at noon inside the Bryce Jordan Center. Students in attendance will receive a free t-shirt and Saturday will also mark Schuylkill County Day inside the BJC. The game will air nationally on Big Ten Network.