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to sophomore Seth Lundy, the Nittany Lions expressed their surprise at the de- cision to remove their head coach just weeks before the start of the 2020-21 sea- son. Coming in the wake of the program's most successful campaign under Cham- bers' leadership, a season in which Penn State climbed into the national top 10 be- fore finishing sixth in the Big Ten at 21-10 overall and 11-9 against conference oppo- nents, the decision and timing of it were that much more puzzling. Dread laid bare his displeasure at seeing the head coach dismissed and the lack of transparency from Penn State's decision- makers as to why. "No, I'm not at peace with it," Dread said. "And I will not be at peace with it until everybody has answers as to why." Shortly after the acceptance of Cham- bers' resignation on Oct. 21, Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour indicated that the department would not disclose the details of its summer personnel in- vestigation into the head coach. The probe had been initiated in response to a new claim spurred on by a July 6 article at ESPN's The Undefeated alleging racially insensitive comments that led to the transfer of guard Rasir Bolton. The find- ings of PSU's investigation prompted Barbour and university president Eric Barron to seek Chambers' resignation. "As difficult as this news may be, we think it's in the best interest of Penn State, our program, and our student-ath- letes," Barbour said at a press conference disclosing the news. "Our main focus at this point is squarely on them." That focus has not satisfied Penn State's players to this point, though. Asked whether he had sought out answers to the many questions that had come in the wake of the decision, Wheeler explained his lingering confusion. "No, we haven't gotten any answers," Wheeler said. "It was hard, because earlier that day before he announced it, we had a meeting with a couple of people on the staff at Penn State asking them, because we knew something was kind of off during the two weeks leading up to it. We just felt the vibe, so me and a couple of guys on the team just had a private meeting with a cou- ple of staff members that are up above, and we [were] told that everything was good." It was not. Told the news by Chambers following an October practice, Dread described a scene filled with disbelief. T apped as the interim head coach for Penn State basketball following the abrupt dismissal of Patrick Chambers in October, Jim Ferry immediately nar- rowed his focus in assessing the pro- gram's situation. Acknowledging the upheaval and po- tential disruption of the moment, Ferry sought continuity. The Nittany Lions were already preparing under the most unusual of circum- stances due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its fallout, and now they were dealing with Chambers' departure just weeks ahead of the late-November start of the non- conference schedule. Given those con- ditions, what players needed, Ferry believed, was a sense of stability. "We had one of the best seasons in the history of the school last year, so I don't think we're looking to change much," Ferry said. "We've kept the practices the same, we've kept the preparations the same, we've kept the expectations the same. So really, there isn't much change." That outlook was very much by de- sign. Understanding the still-raw emo- tion and unresolved disappointment attached to the unexpected coaching change, both among the players and within the rest of the staff, Ferry aimed to lower the temperature of the pro- gram. Entering his fourth season with the Nittany Lions, he has 19 years of head coaching experience to draw from in ad- dition to his time at Penn State as its "of- fensive coordinator." And although Chambers' outsized personality and in- fluence will be missed within the pro- gram, all other personnel have remained the same on both the staff and the roster. Granted, the Nittany Lions are down an all-time great player in forward Lamar Stevens, plus center Mike Watkins and fifth-year transfer guard Curtis Jones. But the nucleus of a team that produced a 21-10 overall record and a sixth-place Big Ten finish (11-9) before the pandemic halted the confer- ence and NCAA tournaments is return- ing. Guard Myreon Jones earned an honorable mention All-Big Ten nod last season thanks to his average of 13.3 points per game on 40.3 percent shoot- ing from 3-point range, plus junior wings Myles Dread and Izaiah Brock- ington are back, as are sophomore spot-up forward Seth Lundy, and sen- ior glue guys John Harrar and Jamari Wheeler. Those players have created an opportunity for Penn State to adhere to a proven, successful formula on both ends of the floor. "I think we're going to play very, very similar to the way we've played. Our pace over the past couple of years has been outstanding, one of the tops in the Big Ten," Ferry said. "What will be a little bit different is that I think we have more shooting, more three-point shooting, than we've had in the past. We might not have as much size or a Ferry prioritizes continuity as Lions' season begins FERRY |

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