Penn State Basketball: Reasonable expectations for this season

2. Compete for a tournament

Penn State basketball could very well make the NCAA Tournament.

The roster, as just mentioned, is experienced and talented, and the coach is getting a better feel for the job.

With that said, three Big Ten teams are ranked in the preseason AP Poll another five received votes. Penn State did not receive any votes. Winning enough conference games to make ‘The Dance’ may not happen.

But, if the Nittany Lions do at least get to .500 in conference play, they will have a chance in the NIT. Penn State has nine out of conference games this year, it will likely need to win at least six of them in order to have an argument for the NIT.

The toughest two games are against Butler and Clemson, tough games, but ones that are also winnable. The Nittany Lion could realistically go 8-1 in out of conference play. The Nittany Lions will also receive another two games in the Shiner’s Children Charleston Classic, but the opponents- outside of Furman- won’t be known until the games are played.

A deep run in the Big Ten tournament will also help this argument. The Nittany Lions won two games in the tournament last year before eventually falling to Purdue in the quarterfinals.

Making the NCAA Tournament would be massive but making the NIT and giving these young players even more experience will be beneficial for the future of the program.