Penn State Opens Sunshine Slam Monday Afternoon vs. Fordham – Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men’s basketball team takes its 5-0 record down to Florida Monday and Tuesday to compete in the Sunshine Slam, beginning with a Monday matchup vs. Fordham. Tipoff from Daytona Beach is slated for 4 p.m. and the game will air nationally on CBS Sports Network.

FOLLOW ALONG

OPENING TIPS

• Penn State takes its 5-0 record down to Florida to compete in the Sunshine Slam this week, beginning with a Monday afternoon matchup against Fordham.
• The Nittany Lions rank top 10 in the country in points per game (98.2 ppg – 2nd), steals per game (13.8 – 3rd), turnovers forced per game (19.2 – 7th) & scoring margin (+31.2 ppg – 8th).
• Five Nittany Lions are averaging double-digit points, led by Ace Baldwin Jr.‘s 16.4 ppg.

IF PENN STATE BEATS FORDHAM

• Penn State would start the season 6-0 for the first time in 25 years (1999-2000 season).
• The Nittany Lions would advance to Tuesday’s 4 p.m. Sunshine Slam championship game to face the winner of Clemson vs. San Francisco.

SCOUTING THE RAMS

• The Rams are 3-3 on the young season under third-year head coach Keith Urgo, who was a Nittany Lion assistant coach from 2012-21.
• Fordham’s wins have come at Seton Hall (57-56) and at home vs. Binghamton (78-63) and Georgian Court (101-61). The Rams’ three losses came at St. John’s (60-92), at Manhattan (76-78) and against Drexel (71-73) in their most recent game Friday night.
• Jackie Johnson III leads the Rams with 19.0 points per game and a team-best 16 triples.
• Jahmere Tripp (11.0 ppg) and Japhet Medor (10.5 ppg) are also averaging double-digit points.

AGAINST FORDHAM

• Penn State State and Fordham meet for the sixth time in program history in a series that dates back to 1907.
• The Nittany Lions and Rams last met in 2014 and Penn State holds a 3-2 all-time advantage.
• Penn State won the last matchup, 73-54, on Nov. 16, 2014 inside the Bryce Jordan Center.

FEAST WEEK

• Penn State heads to Florida to compete in the Sunshine Slam Monday & Tuesday. The Nittany Lions open action Monday at 4 p.m. against Fordham. Penn State will then face either Clemson or San Francisco at either 1:30 or 4 p.m. Tuesday.
• The Nittany Lions are 5-0 and eyeing their first 6-0 start to a season in 25 years. The last Penn State team to start a season 6-0 was the 1999-2000 squad.
• Should Penn State beat Fordham, the Nittany Lions would advance to Tuesday’s Sunshine Slam championship game and look to start the season 7-0 for the first time in 29 years (1995-96 season). The…