Blue White Illustrated

T he moment stuck with John Harrar. With Penn State leading Ohio State, 25-16, on Jan. 18 at the Bryce Jordan Cen- ter, the junior big man trailed as Buckeyes guard Duane Washington Jr. drove to the basket. Standing in the way, seemingly with position and holding his ground, was senior teammate Lamar Stevens. Official D.J. Carstensen felt otherwise. Stevens was called for a blocking foul, and Washington went to the line. But the call didn't send Stevens into orbit. "He didn't even react," Harrar said. "He huddled us up right away. That was the biggest difference I've seen. He huddled us up, he said next play, and then he got right back on defense, right back on of- fense. His head was in the game. I love to see that." The Nittany Lions went on to defeat the Buckeyes, 90-76, thanks in large part to Stevens' 24-point outburst. After three years spent playing alongside him, Harrar said he has come to understand the sig- nificance of the change in Stevens' reac- tion. It's been a point of emphasis for the senior forward this season. "Coach says, 'Touchdown Lamar,'" Harrar said, referencing Notre Dame's famed Touchdown Jesus while pan- tomiming Stevens' frequent arms-up re- action to foul calls that go against him. "But just seeing that, it helps us out." Through 23 games, Penn State had been charged with more fouls than all but one Big Ten team. The Lions were tied for 146th place nationally with 405 total fouls, an av- erage of 17.6 team fouls per game. One of the teams with which the Lions were tied – Purdue – had played one more game than Penn State. Before the season, PSU's coaching staff brought in a Big Ten official to talk to the team. His message was that officials are like players in some respects. Harrar said the official told the team, "We make mis- takes. We're going to have calls that don't go your way." Coach Patrick Chambers has preached the need to respond in an even-keeled way. For him, maintaining a sense of emotional equilibrium requires adhering to a routine on and off the court. "Nothing changes for me. I know that sounds crazy," Chambers said. "I'm telling you. Do you want to know what I do on Sundays? I go to 7:30 mass. That's what I do. If I'm in town, I'm going to 7:30 mass. And I usually bring my children. And that's what I do. And then I go to The Naked Egg. So if you're looking for me at 8:45, I'll be at The Naked Egg having a whole farm, over medium, with bacon. "Coaches are nuts. We get into our rou- tine, this is our routine, and it's not changing. This is who we are." Players have looked to Chambers as a steadying presence, through good and bad. "Coach is our leader. We're always looking towards him and he will just give us the steady ground that we need some- times," Harrar said. "Basketball is a game of runs, so when we're in the huddle, we're trying to talk to each other for a Penn State looking to maintain a consistent demeanor said. "His defense is really terrific. And he's really making smart decisions on the offensive end, even though he's not mak- ing a ton of shots. I feel like those couple of makes that he had [against Indiana] are really going to open things up for him." Dread returned to the starting lineup Feb. 8 in a home game against Minnesota. He connected on 2 of 5 3-point attempts and finished with eight points in an 83-77 victory over the Golden Gophers. Chambers sees Dread's steady improve- ment as part of an upward trend that en- compasses the entire team. The Nittany Lions are in the midst of their best season since Chambers took over the program in 2011, and their coach is convinced they haven't yet reached their ceiling. "I still think we can get a lot better," he said. "We haven't clicked on all cylinders, offensively and defensively, which really excites me as we move forward." ■ Penn State's Class of 2022 is off to a strong start, as point guard Sonny Johnson Jr. of Garfield Heights, Ohio, verbally committed to the Nittany Lions on Jan. 20. A 5-foot-11 sophomore at Garfield Heights High, Johnson was averaging 15 points and six assists through the Bulldogs' first 12 games this season, 10 of them victories. But on Jan. 10, he suffered a torn ACL in a victory over Lorain and will be forced to miss the rest of the season. Johnson, who is a cousin of Ohio State-bound prospect Demetrius Johnson, was also considering Michi- gan State, Nebraska, Toledo and Kent State. The Nittany Lions continued to pursue him after his injury, said his father, Sonny Johnson Sr., who is also his coach at Garfield Heights. "They were consistent in how they recruited him," the elder Johnson told Cleveland.com. "We didn't think it made sense to wait." Sonny Johnson Jr. said he was eager to get the recruiting process over with. "It's a big weight off me," he told Cleveland.com. "I can focus on myself and getting better, coming back stronger, bigger and more athletic." Johnson visited Penn State's cam- pus in August and took a visit to Michigan State shortly thereafter. His commitment is Penn State's first for the Class of 2022. ■ Ohio point guard commits to Lions

• Cover