Penn State Sports Magazine
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D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 4 3 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Three Stars 1. Ace Baldwin Jr. | G | Gr. Penn State head coach Mike Rhoades calls Baldwin the head of the snake, and it's not without merit. Back for his fifth and final year of college basketball, the Nittany Lion point guard has been the best player on both ends of the floor in every outing to begin the season. Through four games, he was averaging 14.3 points per game and was leading the team in minutes played (119), made free throws (17), assists (28) and steals (11). This past summer, Rhoades noted that Baldwin was determined to become a more complete, consistent player. Out of the gate, he's done exactly that. 2. Zach Hicks | F | Sr. Among the team's most improved players, Hicks has taken a leap in development. The Temple transfer has elevated his defensive game remarkably. Through four games, he had 8 steals in the Nittany Lions' press and trap while adding a team-high 6 blocks to go along with a rebounding jump from 3.9 last year to 5.5. Hicks is also off to a hot start on the offensive end. He was shooting 48.3 percent from three-point range through four games, an improvement of 14 percent- age points from last year. 3. Freddie Dilione V | G | R-So. Starting every game after an offseason transfer from Tennessee, Dilione has lived up to his billing as a former four-star prospect and the No. 43 overall player in the 2022 recruiting class, per the On3 Industry Ranking. He's done so subtly, though, contributing in every fashion from scoring to rebounding, steals and assists. Dilione's offensive production has been tied to his ability to get to the basket off the dribble, and subsequently finding himself at the free-throw line with corresponding frequency. Key Moment Opening their season with home games against Binghamton; the University of Maryland, Baltimore County; and St. Francis (Pa.), the Nittany Lions were able to use those opportunities to make early improvements and, most impor- tant of all, win. Penn State also used the games to create a tailwind ahead of a crucial step up in competition. Taking on Virginia Tech in the Hall of Fame Series in Balti- more on Nov. 15, the Lions were determined to parlay their early success into something more substantial. Viewing the matchup with the Hokies as a "state- ment game," Penn State knew it needed to follow through on its impressive season-opening performances. In every respect, it did. Led by Baldwin's 19 points and 10 assists, Penn State dominated in an 86-64 win. The Lions built an early lead, then withstood a late push from the Hokies to end the first half before pulling away after the break. Afterward, Baldwin was asked if the Lions had made the statement they wanted to make. "I think that counts," he said. "We had a long week of practice. Coach was on us the whole week, and I think we did good today." Best Highlight Running roughshod over an outmatched Bingham- ton outfit, Penn State notched a 108-66 win to open the 2024-25 campaign on Nov. 4. Hicks led all scorers with 22 points on 9-of-12 shoot- ing, hitting 4 of 6 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, transfer big man Yanic Konan Niederhauser, a versatile 7-foot junior from Northern Illinois, began his Penn State career with flair. His 16 points and team-high 7 rebounds offered a tantalizing glimpse at what the coaches liked when scouting him out of the transfer portal in the offseason. "You haven't seen anything yet. He's got so much more potential and so much more ability," Rhoades said. "I think if he hangs out with Ace and Nick and those guys, he's only going to get better and better. He just has a great feel. He grew up in Europe playing, and he played against pros for a long, long time. He just has a great feel for how to play basketball the right way." Bold Prediction After defeating Virginia Tech, Penn State's success will hinge on whether it's able to avoid stubbing its toe through the rest of the nonconference schedule. Conference games against Purdue (Dec. 5) and at Rutgers (Dec. 10) could trip up the Nittany Lions along the way, but they'll be heavily favored in every re- maining tilt that isn't against Big Ten competition. To this point, they've shown enough to raise hopes that they'll emerge un- scathed. — Nate Bauer PENN STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL SUPERLATIVES NOV. 4-15 does on the floor, and that is the aspect that enhances his overall floor game. Mingo has a solid handle and looks to get downhill off the bounce. He can knock down shots off the catch or step into them. He is a bit undersized as an off-guard, but he can get a team into sets. Defensively, Mingo is a good on- ball defender, and he rebounds well. "While you can poke holes in the individual pieces of his game, the to- tality of his production is difficult to ignore." Mingo rounds out a class that also features his AAU teammate Mason Blackwood, the No. 126 overall prospect and No. 30 small forward, per the On3 Industry Ranking. Blackwood commit- ted to the Nittany Lions in September. In addition, 7-foot center Justin Houser, a three-star prospect from Camp Hill, Pa., pledged in June. He is listed No. 226 overall, No. 25 at center and No. 9 in Pennsylvania in the Industry Ranking. Penn State's three-member class is listed 39th nationally and fifth in the Big Ten in the On3 Industry Team Ranking. With those three players in the fold, PSU will now focus its recruiting efforts on building the 2026 and '27 classes. The Nittany Lions have yet to land any commitments in their next cycle, but a handful of intriguing targets were on hand for the football team's White Out game against Washington on Nov. 9, in- cluding three-star 2026 shooting guard Mani Sajid of Plymouth-Whitemarsh (Pa.) High and a quartet of 2027 pros- pects: forward Andrew Kretkowski of Rutgers Prep in Franklin Township, N.J.; point guard Korey Francis of Monsignor Bonner in Drexel Hill, Pa.; combo guard Stevie Hall of Cass Tech in Detroit; and point guard Terrence Jones III of St. Frances Academy in Baltimore. ■ Point guard Ace Baldwin Jr. was Penn State's sec- ond-leading scorer through four games, averaging 14.3 points per game. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS