What if Penn State actually joins the SEC?
By Evan Smith
![Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban addresses the assembled media in the Hyatt Regency at SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., Wednesday, July 21, 2021. [Staff Photo/Gary Cosby Jr.]Sec Media Days Alabama](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2Fe9dcc57974be3bcd867c1bbffba917eb777aa65b509c2caef0a0be6fce865a7e.jpg "Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban addresses the assembled media in the Hyatt Regency at SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., Wednesday, July 21, 2021. [Staff Photo/Gary Cosby Jr.]Sec Media Days Alabama")
Impact of Penn State Basketball in the SEC
Maybe, just maybe, this could be the move that allows the Penn State Men’s Basketball program to flourish.
Moving from the Atlantic 10, where believe it or not the Nittany Lions won a conference championship, to the Big Ten has not proven a successful transition.
The Big Ten in recent years has become an absolute powerhouse in college basketball, and even some of the best years in program history hasn’t earned a NCAA Tournament bid for the Nittany Lions since 2011 (although a bid in 2019 under Pat Chambers was guaranteed until the COVID-19 cancellation).
So what does SEC basketball look like?
They had a paltry six teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament last year and names like Florida, Tennessee and Missouri don’t quite scare you like Michigan State, Purdue and Wisconsin. Kentucky is the school with the most history and it would be fun to see Coach Calipari ‘enjoy’ all the amenties the Bryce Jordan Center has to offer.
While the SEC is still a strong basketball conference, Penn State likely wouldn’t have to slog it’s way through a 4-16 conference schedule each year.
On the women’s side, SEC Basketball has some serious strength. Obviously the Tennesse Volunteers are one of the most legendary programs in the history of the sport. Three SEC schools finished in the top 10 last year (Texas A&M #4, South Carolina #6 and Georgia #10). As opposed to the Big 10 which has had one or two great teams in recent years (Maryland and Ohio State mostly), the deeper SEC will make the rebuild for Carolyn Kieger likely even more difficult.