YAY HOOPS: Penn State vs Mercyhurst Preview, Open Thread

Penn State looked much better against Pitt this year than last, where they got blasted into the stratosphere by over 40 points. The 6-point loss means this group of Lions may gel together to form something interesting, by season’s end. They return home to play a Mercyhurst team at the bottom of the

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What is the story about?

Penn State looked much better against Pitt this year than last, where they got blasted into the stratosphere by over 40 points. The 6-point loss means this group of Lions may gel together to form something interesting, by season’s end.

They return home to play a Mercyhurst team at the bottom of the Kenpom rankings, so this should be no issue for the Lions. The Lakers have no outside presence, so the risk of someone going off and making life interesting isn’t really there, and they lack the size to compete

in the glass. They are guard-oriented, so the Lions can turn them over to make this one quick and painless early.

Mercyhurst is an old team built around guards. Its core is a group of graduate students and seniors who have played many college games, most of them at the Division I level.

The leader is junior guard Jake Lemelman. He averaged 13.9 points last season, started every game, and made the All-NEC Third Team. He was named to this year’s Preseason All-NEC Team. He has led Mercyhurst in scoring in both games against Division I opponents.

Around him are several experienced transfers. Geoff Sprouse is a graduate guard from American. Marcus Jackson is a graduate guard who played at UAlbany and Siena. Daemar Kelly is a senior guard who played at Northern Illinois, Saint Francis and Quinnipiac. Tennessee Rainwater is a 6-7 senior wing who played at Utah Tech and Le Moyne. He averaged 9.8 points and 4.3 rebounds last season and also made the Preseason All-NEC Team. Deraje Agbaosi is a 6-7 graduate forward who played at North Alabama, New Mexico and Cal State LA. Johnathon Pierce, a 6-8 junior forward, came from Pensacola State, a junior college.

Cameron Johnson, a 6-5 senior forward, is a returner who began his career at Lake Erie. Or Faran, a 6-5 sophomore guard from Israel, and Chris Leman, a 6-9 sophomore forward, are also back.

The freshmen add some international flavor. Hunter Te Ratana is a 6-5 guard from Auckland, New Zealand. Shuto Sakihama is a 5-9 guard from Okinawa, Japan. Markus Maxwell-Grimes, a guard from Harlem, has already scored in double figures against Notre Dame.