Penn State Vs. Wisconsin Basketball Preview: The Nittany Lions' Last Hurrah

Penn State most likely will close the 2024-25 men's basketball season with a Big Ten road game vs. the Wisconsin Badgers.

Penn State Nittany Lions guard Ace Baldwin Jr. shoots the ball during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at Bryce Jordan Center. / Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Penn State men's basketball likely concludes its season Saturday at Wisconsin, though Nittany Lions coach Mike Rhoades wasn't ready to make that decision public just yet. With a win over the Badgers on Saturday, Penn State technically could receive an invitation to the NIT Tournament or the College Basketball Crown, though either option is unlikely. And Rhoades wants to finish the regular season before discussing anything that might follow. Rhoades added that he would address any potential postseason after Saturday's game.

"All my focus right now is on just going to work here the next three days to get prepared for Wisconsin. That is all our focus," Rhoades said this week in State College. "I thought we had a good practice Tuesday, got back in the gym and really got after it and competed. I said I’m simpylfiyng everything here and let’s lock in to what’s in front of us right now. I want to see these guys handle this right going into Wisconsin. That’s how we evaluated everything. My focus is on one thing and one thing only, having these guys ready for Saturday."

Penn State is finishing a disappointing second season under Rhoades, which began with promise. The Nittany Lions won 12 of their first 14 games, including a home victory over then No. 8 Purdue, and were 2-1 in the Big Ten in early January. Penn State then lost 11 of its next 12, falling to last place in the conference at one point, in a stretch marred by the season-ending injury to senior Puff Johnson.

Penn State (15-15 overall) recovered briefly to win two games, including a 69-60 decision at Minnesota for its only Big Ten road victory of the season. To finish the regular season with a winning record overall, Penn State must beat No. 12 Wisconsin (22-7) on the road. Penn State is 2-23 all-time at Wisconsin, where it hasn't won since 1996.

Last game for Penn State's seniors

There won’t be many real implications for the Nittany Lions at Wisconsin. The Big Tournament is no longer in play for the 17th team in the standings, as only 15 teams qualify. Rhoades made his thoughts on the new format clear recently, saying it's “ridiculous” that the Big Ten shortened the tournament field.

With no chance to redeem a disappointing 1-11 stretch of Big Ten play, Saturday’s matchup notably marks the end of five players’ tenures. All five players transferred to Penn State for the 2023-24 season when Rhoades took over as head coach.

Ace Baldwin Jr., Nick Kern Jr., Puff Johnson, Zach Hicks and D’Marco Dunn all became foundational pieces for Rhoades with the Nittany Lions, with Baldwin developing into a Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the team’s go-to scorer over the last two seasons.

While the seniors didn’t accomplish Rhoades’ goal of making the NCAA Tournament, they were core members of his first two years with a program he’s seeking to lift to a national status. Even with one game remaining, Rhoades said he wants his players focused.

“I told these guys, the league the last eight weeks didn’t go as we [planned] it to go, and you have to deal with it, you have to handle it,” Rhoades told reporters this week in State College. “I do think we’ve played hard and we fought but we haven’t got the results we want. But we still have another result to go get. Let’s go do it the right way and try to go get it.”

How to watch Penn State vs. Wisconsin

The Penn State-Wisconsin game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. ET tip-off at the Kohl Center in Madison. Peacock will stream the game exclusively. Can't watch? Listen to Steve Jones and Dick Jerardi on the Penn State Radio Network.

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