Who: Chattanooga Mocs
When: Thursday, November 5, 6:00 PM EST
Network: Big Ten Network
Kenpom Ranking (Penn State): 253 (87)
Line: PSU -12.5
Penn State opened the season on Monday with a rout of Canisius. The Lions got a late bump from the availability of Roko Prkačin, who went for 28 points in his debut as a Nittany Lion. Their second game of the season is against a Chattanooga that should pose no threat before the real test begins.
The Chattanooga Mocs, coached by former Penn State player Dan Earl,
has a roster make-up not too dissimilar to the Lions, with three overseas players, two D2 players, and a litany of other transfers making up the 17-man roster, to go along with the six players that returned. They hung around with Louisville in the second half of their opener, but the hole they had to dig out of was too big to overcome.
Chattanooga approached their roster makeup the same way Penn State did. Get old, by any means necessary. Many players have played big minutes against grown men or carried teams at other levels. The challenge is that almost none of them have played together. Tonight is only their second game as a group. So both the Mocs and the Nittany Lions are going into a game where the majority of the players are playing their second game as a team.
Scouting the Opposition
The Mocs shoot a lot of threes. Against Louisville, 33 of their 57 shots came from three. They made 12 of them, for 36.4%. Four players made at least two threes. That includes Yonatan Levy, a 6-10 forward who stretches the floor. Chattanooga took few free throws and made only 57.1% of them. On defense, they forced 10 turnovers and got eight steals. They did not control the glass. Louisville had 17 offensive rebounds. Lenny Anigbata and Zach Bleshoy, a forward and guard respectively, were the other players alongside Levy to have a double-digit outing against the Cardinals.
What to Watch For
Pressure – Can Penn State’s pressure create turnovers early, the way Louisville’s did? The Mocs committed 18 turnovers against Louisville, so Penn State can take advantage.
Rebounding – The Mocs were terrible on the glass last time out, so this shouldn’t be much of an issue for the Lions.
Moc Shooting – Chattanooga is going to shoot threes. They’re going to make a good chunk of them. Can the Lions stop them from making too many of them?
Prediction
It probably won’t be the laugher that Canisius was, but Penn State should still come out ahead. Penn State 88, Chattanooga 78
