Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1499919
J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 3 3 7 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M and despite heavy consideration to re- main at Penn State, Mahaffey decided on May 3 to play for the Buckeyes. He saw action in 34 games, averaging 2.8 points in his debut season at Penn State. There was less intrigue about whether Njie was staying or going. He had started 26 games for the Nittany Lions this past season, averaging 3.4 points and 3.5 re- bounds. It was no surprise when he an- nounced on May 6 that he was headed to Notre Dame with Shrewsberry. Retained Scholarship Players (3) Losing Mahaffey and Njie stung, but the return of Clary, Lilley and Brown was a win for Penn State. Clary saw significant action as a true freshman, representing a change of pace for the Nittany Lion offense. He played 10.4 minutes per game, averaging 3.7 points with a 43.4 percent field goal rate. Brown served as a minor reserve player deep off the bench but garnered positive reviews for his potential throughout the season. Lilley was injured coming into the sea- son and saw minimal action, playing in only five games. Incoming Transfers (7) Ace Baldwin, the reigning Atlantic 10 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, started the rebuilding pro- cess for Penn State in April. When the Virginia Commonwealth point guard committed to PSU on Easter Sunday, it marked the first step toward building back the roster under Rhoades. Baldwin starred for the Rams as a ju- nior last season, averaging 12.7 points, 5.8 assists and 2.9 rebounds over 34.9 minutes per game. In the process, he guided VCU to a 27-8 overall record, an Atlantic 10 regular-season champion- ship (15-3), a league tourney title and an NCAA Tournament berth. When his VCU teammate Nick Kern Jr. followed shortly thereafter, the Nittany Lions had a foundation upon which to build. Kern, a 6-6, 190-pound combo guard, started 19 games during his sophomore season at VCU, averaging 5.3 points and 2.7 rebounds. Te m p l e 's Z a c h H i c k s , a 6 - 8 , 195-pound wing with junior eligibility, selected Penn State on April 20. The fol- lowing week, North Carolina small for- ward Puff Johnson and 6-11 Georgetown center Qudus Wahab hopped aboard in quick succession. Both will have senior eligibility. The roster was further bolstered by the addition of super senior Leo O'Boyle, a 6-7 forward from Lafayette, and gradu- ate student RayQuawndis Mitchell, a 6-5 combo guard from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. O'Boyle averaged a team-high 11.6 points per game for the Leopards last season, along with 3.6 rebounds. He was a volume sharpshooter, knocking down 74 of 182 attempts (40.7 percent) from beyond the arc. Mitchell, meanwhile, excelled at Mis- souri-Kansas City last season. He was a second-team all-conference selection in the Summit League after leading the Kangaroos with an average of 17.3 points per game. Incoming Recruit (1) The Nittany Lions' three-man 2023 recruiting class disintegrated after Shrewsberry's exit, with forward Carey Booth and guards Braeden Shrewsberry and Logan Imes all asking to be released from their letters of intent. All three ended up signing with Notre Dame. However, those departures were at least partially offset with the addition on May 17 of Gudmundsson, a 19-year- old Icelandic point guard who com- mitted to Penn State as a 2023 recruit. Gudmundsson averaged 10.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 25 games with U.M.F. Grindavik in the Iceland-Subway League. It is considered the highest level of competition in Icelandic club basket- ball. Remaining Possibilities Penn State has two scholarships re- maining for the 2023-24 season and in- tends to fill them. As of mid-May, the Nittany Lions were working to secure a commitment from Miami (Fla.) redshirt freshman center Favour Aire, who visited cam- pus recently. The 6-foot-10, 215-pound prospect entered the transfer portal fol- lowing his first season with the Hurri- canes and took an official visit to Penn State on May 10-12. ■ 2 0 2 3 - 2 4 P E N N S T A T E S C H O L A R S H I P R O S T E R * No. Name Pos. Elig. Ht. Wt. Home High School/Last College — Ace Baldwin G Sr. 6-1 190 Baltimore St. Frances Academy/VCU 5 Jameel Brown G So. 6-4 188 Philadelphia Westtown School 0 Kanye Clary G So. 5-11 192 Virginia Beach, Va. Massanutten Military Academy — Bragi Gudmundsson G Fr. 6-5 185 Grindavik, Iceland U.M.F. Grindavik — Zach Hicks F Jr. 6-8 195 Camden, N.J. Camden Catholic/Temple — Puff Johnson F Sr. 6-8 200 Moon Township, Pa. Hillcrest Prep (Ariz.)/North Carolina — Nick Kern Jr. G Jr. 6-6 190 St. Louis Vashon/VCU 14 Demetrius Lilley F So. 6-10 260 Philadelphia Lower Merion — RayQuawndis Mitchell G Gr. 6-5 200 Blaine, Minn. Blaine/Missouri-Kansas City — Leo O'Boyle F Sr.+ 6-7 210 Scranton, Pa. Scranton Prep/Lafayette — Qudus Wahab C Sr.+ 6-11 245 Lagos, Nigeria Flint Hill (Va.)/Georgetown * As of May 18 Rhoades has brought in two players from his backcourt at Virginia Commonwealth, senior Ace Baldwin and junior Nick Kern. PHOTO BY DANIEL ALTHOUSE