MIDDLETOWN, Pa. (WHTM) — Penn State Harrisburg Men's Basketball just won back-to-back conference championships, the only two in school history. Now for the second time in three years, the Lions will play in the NCAA Division III National Tournament (the 2021 season was cancelled due to COVID).
There's a lot to love about this Penn State Harrisburg team.
Despite only lost three games this season, the team was never ranked in the Top 25, and only received five votes the entire season to crack into the ranks. In fact, despite their 23-3 record, Penn State Harrisburg isn't even regionally ranked.
If they wanted to get into the national tournament, they had no choice but to win the conference.
After losing their big man Dylan Daniels in the first half of the United East Semifinal nothing was a given. The team relied on balanced small ball to eek out the 77-67 victory over St. Mary's College (Md.) and set up a title game rematch.
Of course, the storybook season had to go through top-seeded Lancaster Bible playing on their home court. The pair split the regular season meetings 1-1, with LBC winning the regular season finale 72-57.
Safe to say, it left a sour taste in Penn State Harrisburg's mouth. Head Coach Don Friday said they had their bell rung and didn't show up for the fight.
The Championship game on Saturday was a completely different story. PSHbg knocked down 56.5 percent of their field goals, managed to play tough in the paint with 44 points down low even without Daniels, got 18 points out of the bench. And ultimately, Penn State Harrisburg won its second-straight conference title, 85-52.
Nate Curry led all scorers with 25 points and was named the United East Tournament MVP. Senior Donyae Baylor-Carroll (Milton Hershey grad) had 23 points of his own, with his best friend Pedro Rodriguez (also a Milton Hershey grad) reaching double figures.
And it wasn't all offense, Penn State Harrisburg held LBC to its lowest point total of the season.
No one has given the Blue & White the respect this team has earned. But instead of feel sorry for themselves, Penn State Harrisburg will head into the NCAA Tournament with a chip on their shoulders.
Once again having to prove why they've deserved more respect since they knocked off No. 6 Johns Hopkins in double overtime in March 2020.
It's time to go dancing, Lions. Penn State Harrisburg awaits its seeding, first round matchup and location, which will be announced in Monday's NCAA Division III Selection Show at 12:30 p.m. You can watch the show live on NCAA.com.
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