Penn State Basketball: 2018-19 Season Preview

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NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 01: Josh Reaves #23 of the Penn State Nittany Lions reacts in the second half against the Northwestern Wildcats during the second round of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 1, 2018 in New York City (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

Team Defense

Team defense is an interesting point to bring up here, as Penn State was sensational defensively last season. The team ranked 19th in the country in adjusted defense last season according to Ken Pom.

The efforts on the defensive end were led by shooting guard, Josh Reaves, who was 13th in the nation in steals with 2.31 per game. Center Mike Watkins also chipped into the effort, as he was 20th in the nation in blocks with 2.34.

This season, I think Penn State will improve on their defensive statistics from last season. The main reason for this is sophomore point guard Jamari Wheeler replacing Tony Carr in the starting lineup.

As good as Tony Carr was on offense, his defense was average, as his lateral quickness wasn’t great. Wheeler is a pest, and averaged 1.3 steals per game in only 14.4 minutes per game last season. With a Patrick-Beverley-type mentality on defense, expect Wheeler to average over two steals per game this season.

Myles Dread also should be a help defensively this season. As previously mentioned, he had 3 steals in the exhibition game in West Virginia on Saturday.

Expect this activity on defense to lead to several buckets in transition as well. Penn State is going to be a team that loves to run, and play fast, something that we didn’t see much last season.

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