Micah Shrewsberry has done a lot of good stuff since he took over as the Penn State men’s basketball coach last year. He’s completed a couple of solid-to-strong recruiting classes, used the transfer portal to fill in some significant gaps left by departures that were no fault of his own, and, if you’re watching closely, has shown a grasp of Xs and Os that exceeds that of most of his Nittany Lion coaching predecessors.
However, he seems to have fallen into the trap that ensnared many of those predecessors and a sizable chunk of Penn State’s not-so-sizable men’s hoops fan base—namely, he thinks Big Ten officials are out to get him and his team.
To which I would say:
- No they’re not.
- If they are, the coach and his team need to try a few other tactics
The Nittany Lions’ mid-winter nose dive continued Saturday with a 74-68 loss at Maryland, their fourth straight defeat and fifth in the last six games. And a couple of quick looks at the final box underscore what have been two sticking points for Shrewsberry for the bulk of the season. The Terrapins shot 23 free throws to Penn State’s four. And Jalen Pickett, the do-it-all senior guard who spends more time with the ball in his hands than any other Nittany Lion, went to the free-throw line once, bringing his total free-throw attempts over the four-game losing streak to … one.
