Chambers, Lions making strides through preseason
Just a few days before opening the year with a preseason exhibition at the Bryce Jordan Center, Patrick Chambers likes the shape his Nittany Lions have taken.
Welcoming two redshirts in Terrence Samuel and Mike Watkins, along with a much-touted group of true freshmen out of Philadelphia’s Roman Catholic HS in Tony Carr, Lamar Stevens and Nazeer Bostick, Chambers expected an acclimation process to the season’s start. With it, he said, has come a series of ups and downs within practices and the team’s series of scrimmages.
But, in the moments when the pieces align correctly, Chambers said he experiences an undeniable excitement for the possibilities ahead.
“There's been some really good days too that gets you ridiculously excited for the season when you see everything click on defense and offense and special teams,” said Chambers. “You get fired up and you can't wait to get back to work, or at least you can't wait to watch the film that night. Younger guys are coming along, like I've said, they're very coachable.”
Coming off a scrimmage with Seton Hall at the Palestra last Saturday night, one his Nittany Lions walked away with an 86-73 advantage, Chambers met with the media Wednesday afternoon to assess the progress he’s seen through the duration of the preseason. Noting his concern about the pace and speed his young, inexperienced group would encounter from the Big East champion Pirates, Chambers was pleased with the output he saw.
“Sometimes it takes a little to get adjusted and I think with the style that we've played, they were perfectly fine. They adjusted right away. There was no learning curve there,” said Chambers, ticking off the performances of Mike Watkins, Shep Garner, Josh Reaves and Davis Zemgulis as particularly encouraging. “Everybody is contributing. It's nice to see that you can play 10 guys and not really lose much.”
According to Chambers, Watkins produced a line of 15 points and nine rebounds in 18 minutes of action, while Zemgulis put down 3 of 5 3-pointers for 9 points in 15 minutes. Said Chambers, “(Zemgulis) knows what he's doing now, knows his job and looks very comfortable out there. So I was really proud of the growth he's shown from last year to this year.”
Set to take on Lock Haven at 6 p.m. Friday, the Nittany Lions will be without junior Payton Banks, who has been in and out of action for the past two weeks while nursing a hamstring issue. He’s being held out and hoped to be back before Penn State takes on Albany to open the season next Friday at the BJC.
As a result, Penn State’s starting lineup is expected to be Tony Carr at the point, Shep Garner, Josh Reaves, Lamar Stevens and Julian Moore. Redshirt junior transfer Terrence Samuel, Watkins, and Banks represent a first off the bench combination that Chambers likes for its chemistry.