Penn State Sports Magazine
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J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 4 41 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Kachi Nzeh PF | So. | 6-8 | 230 Nzeh became the first transfer to join Penn State's 2024-25 roster, committing to the Nittany Lions after one season at Xavier. This past season, Nzeh started four of 19 games played, averaging 9.9 minutes per outing and posting 2.5 points and 2.5 rebounds per contest. He connected on 18 of 30 shots from the floor. Indicative of his rise through the back half of the schedule, though, Nzeh's role grew considerably down the stretch in the Big East. Beginning with a breakout game at Seton Hall on Feb. 14 in which he played 20 minutes, Nzeh averaged 18.5 minutes in eight of Xavier's next 10 games to close the season. Among those performances, he scored a season- high 13 points with 6 rebounds against Georgetown on March 2 and had another 6 points and 5 boards against Georgia in the first round of the NIT. Coming out of George School in New- town, Pa., Nzeh was a target of Rhoades and his staff while they were still at Vir- ginia Commonwealth. He was an all- state selection coached by former Penn State guard Ben Luber. Nzeh is physical, plays through con- tact, and has the high motor that Penn State needed. Relying on center Qudus Wahab this past season, the Nittany Lions had some physicality in the paint but lacked size in rebounding throughout the campaign. Those deficiencies were reflected in the team's rebounding differential. For the season, Penn State finished 324th out of 351 Division I teams in rebounding. The Nittany Lions were minus-4.6 on the boards overall. Against Big Ten op- ponents, they were minus-5.2, dead last in the conference. Nzeh isn't a replacement for Wahab at center. However, he is a power forward who is expected to help Penn State's re- bounding with substantial minutes. Yanic Konan Niederhauser C | Jr. | 7-0 | 255 Niederhauser, a stretch forward from Northern Illinois, is effectively the Nit- tany Lions' replacement for Wahab. He was the second of the team's spring transfer visitors, traveling to campus just days after Nzeh's visit. The timing was not coincidental — Niederhauser was a priority. In his two seasons at Northern Illi- nois, the Swiss-born Niederhauser ap- peared in 47 games, starting 26 of the 27 contests in which he played during the 2023-24 campaign. Seeing 19.6 minutes per game for the Huskies, he averaged 7.3 points and 4.4 rebounds. Niederhauser knocked down 7 of 24 three-point attempts last season (29.2 percent) while helping to space the floor. And, maybe more important, he also served as a rim protector on the defen- sive end of the court, notching at least 1 block in all but five games and finishing with 57 for the season. Eli Rice G/F | So. | 6-8 | 215 Rice, who spent his first college sea- son at Nebraska, was the third transfer to commit to the Nittany Lions this off- season. A native of Gallatin, Tenn., he en- tered the portal following a season with the Cornhuskers in which he logged 4.2 points and 1.6 rebounds in 9.8 minutes over 17 games. Originally committing to Nebraska out of IMG Academy in Braden- ton, Fla., Rice carried three-star status and was the No. 262 overall prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, per the On3 In- dustry Ranking. Like Nzeh, he was also pursued heavily by Rhoades and his staff while at VCU. So, upon Rice's entering the transfer por- tal on March 25, the Nittany Lions soon Center Yanic Konan Niederhauser was a high-priority target for Penn State after starting 26 games during his sopho- more season at Northern Illinois. PHOTO COURTESY PENN STATE ATHLETICS