Penn State's Mike Rhoades on New Big Ten Basketball Tournament: It's 'Ridiculous'

The Nittany Lions coach says it's "not professional" that three teams will get left out of the Big Ten Tournament.

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach MIke Rhoades reacts against the Southern California Trojans in the second half at Galen Center. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Penn State basketball is unlikely to play in the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since 1997, also the last year the tournament didn't exist. A formatting change for 2025 means three teams will not qualify for the Big Ten Tournament, which in the past qualified the entire conference for participation. Count Penn State coach Mike Rhoades among those unhappy with the change.

"I think it's horses---, to be honest with you," Rhoades said Wednesday night after the Nittany Lions' 83-78 loss at Indiana.

Penn State (5-13 conference) is outside the 15-team Big Ten bracket with two regular-season games remaining, meaning the Nittany Lions need wins and help to make the field. Penn State closes the regular season against two ranked teams: No. 16 Maryland at home Saturday and at No. 11 Wisconsin on March 8. The Nittany Lions need to win both even to have a chance at the Big Ten Tournament, which begins March 12.

In previous years, struggling Big Ten teams could count on a conference tournament appearance as one more shot to elevate a lackluster season. But this year, the Big Ten changed the format. Instead of inviting the entire conference, the Big Ten capped participation to 15 teams after expanding membership to 18. As a result, Penn State could be among the first teams not to qualify for the conference tournament.

Rhoades, Penn State's second-year head coach, sharply criticized the change after his team's loss at Indiana on Wednesday night.

"Everybody bangs their chest about student-athlete experience, and we're in the Big Ten and we're keeping three teams out of it?" Rhoades told reporters in Bloomington after the game. "And you've seen how we played today. We had a tough stretch. We had a crazy schedule too, and I don't think you take away experiences from student-athletes. I think it's ridiculous. I think it's not professional."

Penn State certainly struggled in Big Ten play this season following a December win over Purdue. Since then, Penn State is 4-13 in conference play, having lost seven straight games and 11 of 12. The Nittany Lions, however, snapped the losing streak with two straight wins, including their first Big Ten road victory of the season (69-60 at Minnesota). Rhoades thought that should be part of the consideration.

"The leaders got to do a better job talking that through, because last year we went to the tournament and we beat a team [Michigan]. And if we have one box out, we beat Indiana [in the second round]. Now we win two games. You don't think we can do that this year if we went? There's a lot of hypocrites right now in college athletics when it comes to, 'We want to take care of the student-athletes, the student-athlete experience.' And then we're in the Big Ten and we're keeping people out of it. We didn't even do that in Division III when I was at Randolph-Macon. Not a fan of it."

Rhoades continued.

"Even if I was at the top three in the league, I think you never take away experiences and opportunities for young people. Us adults should be on top of that. I'll probably get in trouble for saying that."

We'll see. Watch the video of Rhoades' comments, courtesy of Indiana basketball beat writer Owen Graham.

Mike Rhoades’ full comment on the new Big Ten basketball tournament format following Penn State’s loss at Indiana. #iubb #BigTen pic.twitter.com/Ah9ToUpSJq

— Owen Graham (@owengraham22) February 27, 2025

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