Saturday, June 24, 2006
New Haven Register - Heart of a Lion:
"... Geary returns the love by playing his hardest, something that has become the norm for the 6-foot-5, 222-pound swingman during his first two seasons at Penn State. Claxton led the Nittany Lions in scoring as both a freshman and sophomore. He also led them in rebounding last season. He has racked up more than 800 points and 400 rebounds in his two seasons.
"'He’s one of the top guys returning in one of the best leagues in the country,' Penn State coach Ed DeChellis said. 'Next year will be tougher for him. He’s become a national name, so people are going to know who he is when he walks into an arena.'
"People also know that Penn State is going to be for real next season. The Nittany Lions hadn’t won more than nine games in a season since going to the NCAA tournament Sweet 16 in 2001, but last year they won 15 and earned a berth in the NIT, where they lost to Rutgers in the first round.
"Behind Claxton and returning Big Ten freshman of the year Jamelle Cornley, Penn State figures to have a shot at getting to the NCAA tournament this season. Traditional Big Ten powers Illinois, Iowa and Michigan State all suffered major personnel losses, but the Nittany Lions return four of five starters. ..."
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Thursday, June 22, 2006
Big Ten looking at 2007 to launch TV channel:
"No college athletic conference in America boasts more alumni spread over more areas of the nation than the Big Ten. Fans of the 11 schools fill more seats and view more televised hours of athletic events than any other; it's not even close.
"It seemed inevitable, then, that in this age of new media and accessibility, that the Big Ten would be the first to launch its own television channel. That officially happened yesterday.
"As it announced a 10-year agreement with the Disney-owned conglomerate of ABC, ESPN and ESPN2, the conference also launched The Big Ten Channel, aiming for an August, 2007 start-up. ..."
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Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Penn State Live: "Big Ten announces media agreements increasing national coverage of conference sports"
Not sure I can succinctly explain it, plenty of details in there - Ed.
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Altoona Mirror - Making It Happen For You:
"
With football schools like Florida and Texas being successful in college basketball, is it safe to say that Penn State can win in men’s basketball?"He (Ed DeChellis) is probably one of the most admired coaches in the Big 10 right now. Having done a lot of Big 10 games, there is a fear of playing him now, and it’s because he’s starting to get guys. He’s able to get a guy here. Maybe there’s a kid in Chicago who thinks, ‘Maybe I’ll go to Illinois, or maybe I’ll play right away at Penn State.’ It can be done. You just have to keep working at it. I think facilities have become important, and certainly their facility is terrific."
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Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Lions just hope star N.Y. guard keeps his word:
"If a euphemism is trotted out enough times as part of a sport's jargon, it can be absorbed at face value even if it's not that at all. Take the well-worn college recruiting term 'verbal commitment.'
"I heard that WTKT (1460 AM) talk-show host Jed Donahue made light of the phrase recently. He said a more accurate term would be 'verbal declaration.'
"He's right. And no more so than in the current climate of college sports. That a 17-year-old says he's headed to State U. means next to nothing anymore. Not until he signs the binding National Letter of Intent. ..."
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Thursday, June 15, 2006
DeChellis fights for what's right:
"When he took over the Penn State men's basketball head coaching job three years ago, Ed DeChellis said he would take no short cuts. He's not that kind of guy.
"He plugs away at his job every day, tearing away the rotten layers of foundation before rebuilding his own.
"He did it at East Tennessee State, taking seven years to shovel away the slag of a losing program and gradually build it into an NCAA tournament success story.
"He's doing the same thing now at Penn State. The fetid core of a chronic loser has been stripped. And you can now see the framework of a winner going up.
"But DeChellis has, all the while, been fighting on another front. And this fight, this opponent, is tougher. ..."
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