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HOPE AND CHANGE The improved Lions are preparing for a tough Big Ten slate. Can they keep winning? These are not the Nittany Lions of Patrick Chambers' first two seasons at the helm. Blessed with one of the best backcourts in college basketball (yes, you read that correctly), Penn State is putting up points this season and, more important, victories. Though home losses to Bucknell and Princeton and road losses against Mississippi in Brooklyn and against Pitt at the Petersen Events Center have marred the Nittany Lions' nonconference record, there is every reason to believe they will have enough success during the Big Ten season to propel themselves into the postseason for the first time since the 2010-11 campaign. It all begins on New Year's Eve, when they will welcome Michigan State to the Bryce Jordan Center. LAST SEASON Losing senior point guard Tim Frazier to a ruptured Achilles tendon just weeks into the season, the Nittany Lions battled but came up short through much of the year. Except for an 84-78 victory against eventual NCAA tournament runner-up Michigan at the Bryce Jordan Center, the season was a forgettable one for Penn State, lowlighted by a 14-game losing streak to open the conference schedule. FAVORITES With so many outstanding programs in a conference projected to be one of the best in the country, choosing just one is a fool's errand. In fact, as of Dec. 16, the Big Ten had the No. 3 (Ohio State), No. 4 (Wisconsin) and No. 5 (Michigan State) teams in the Associated Press Top 25. Throw in strong earlyseason showings from Iowa and unmet expectations from Michigan and the 2013-14 conference slate is shaping up to be a weekly back-and-forth between the powers of the Big Ten. Certainly, as BIG TEN PREVIEW Patrick Mansell MVP CANDIDATE Newbill was averaging 19 points per game through mid-December for the Nittany Lions. the preseason No. 1 team, Tom Izzo's Spartans have to be considered the favorites for the conference championship. But if they have an edge over the league's other elites, it's a slender one. DARK HORSES Fran McCaffery's Hawkeyes are off to a hot start, having defeated Xavier and Notre Dame and taken Villanova to overtime before falling by six points. Purdue is inexperienced but loaded with talent. Even Illinois is starting to come back around after suffering a talent drain at the end of Bruce Weber's term. Believe it or not, even the Nittany Lions can't be counted out of this category. Is that to say that Frazier and fellow guard D.J. Newbill can catapult the program from worst to first in just one season? Hardly. But the very idea that Penn State could compete on the level of the Big Ten's elite would have been preposterous as recently as a few months ago – especially considering the off-season transfers of veteran guard Jermaine Marshall and forward Jon Graham. In a conference that has a clear upper echelon and a muddier mix in the middle, just about anything seems possible heading into the Big Ten season. MVP CANDIDATES Take your pick. From Michigan State standouts Keith Appling, Adreian Payne and Gary Harris to Indiana star Yogi Ferrell or even Michigan's Nik Stauskas, all could find themselves as potential MVP candidates by the end of the season. Newbill could make his own claim after pouring in 19 points per game through 12 games to lead the Big Ten, with Frazier's 18.4point average ranking second in the conference. As is always the case, MVP candidates come from teams with winning records, so for either Newbill or Frazier to emerge with the honor, the Nittany Lions will have to find a way to keep winning games. PENN STATE'S CHANCES With an influx of talent through transfers and incoming freshmen, this Penn State team is no joke. The Nittany Lions are now scoring about 80 points per game as a team, and with two of the top scorers in the conference in the same backcourt, there doesn't seem to be any slowdown in sight, especially considering the NCAA rules changes that have made it easier for guards to draw fouls. The key for the Lions this season will be the performance of complementary players Ross Travis, Brandon Taylor, Donovon Jack and transfer guard Allen Roberts. Both Travis and Taylor are averaging about 11 points per game to go along with their strong rebounding numbers, but they have a habit of getting into foul trouble, and the competition is only going to get tougher once the Big Ten season begins. – N.B.

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