For the men's basketball team and its followers, this was The Year of the Surprise.

The Lions finished second in the Atlantic 10 and third in the National Invitation Tournament. Coach Bruce Parkhill won A-10 Coach of the Year. Ed Fogell was named to the A-10 All-Conference team. And DeRon Hayes was the conference's Freshman of the Year.

One of the biggest surprises of the season, however, was the Lions finishing the season with a 25-9 record. Added to the 20-12 record from last season, it was the first time in Penn State basketball history that the team captured back-to-back 20-win seasons.

"To win 25 games at Penn State, and to do it after winning 20 games, is really an incredible accomplishment given the history of Penn State," Parkhill said. "A lot of times our guys had to compete against people with more innate talent. So, a lot of times they were going against the odds."

"If you would have asked me before the season, I would have said that would be tough to do," Fogell said. "But as the season progressed we realized we were a good team."

After the Lions missed making it into the NCAA tournament they surprised the experts as well as themselves by making it to the NIT Final Four by beating traditionally good teams such as Marquette and Maryland.

"To me it was amazing because of the disappointment of not getting into the NCAA and then the route we had to take to the Final Four," Parkhill said. "I think we had the toughest route of any of the Final Four teams."

"I'm surprised that we did as we did in the NIT," point guard Freddie Barnes said. "I think a lot times when teams get to a tournament like the NIT they have a tendency not to play hard. We didn't play well in the Marquette game and I think after that everybody started to play well and get serious about the NIT."

The season that started with questions turned into surprise and downright giddiness for the team and its followers as it ran off five straight wins to start the season. Parkhill and his staff thought the Lions would be cold in December and heat up in January.

The Lions recorded easy wins against Juniata and Vermont. After they pulled off a big 82-72 win against Brigham Young, the Lions squeaked by George Mason, 71-69. Then the Lions beat Atlantic 10 foe Temple, 61-59, in a packed Rec Hall to complete the 5-0 start.

"I think that was great, although it did raise expectations -- including all of our own," Parkhill said. "It gave these guys the confidence to know that they could get it done. I think later on in the season that confidence helped them realize they could do some real special things."

The play of Ed Fogell wasn't surprising, but the Lions got surprising play from James Barnes, who was second on the team in scoring (11.5) and first in rebounding (6.7). But not a lot of other people noticed his play.

"I don't think he got the credit he deserved," Parkhill said. "I thought he should have been mentioned on one of the all-conference teams. I think Jimmy had a great year, and I see him getting even better next year."

"He rose to the occasion," point guard Freddie Barnes said. "He did a lot of rebounding for us and showed some teams that he could score. I think he deserved to be in the top three teams of the Atlantic 10."

Parkhill was even more surprised with DeRon Hayes. He didn't question his ability, but questioned whether he could come back after sitting out his freshman year with a broken foot. Hayes not only came back, but also won Freshman of the Year in the A-10.

"I haven't seen a player come back and have a good year after an injury like that," Parkhill said. "He was truly a freshman this year and he had a super year. He hit a lot of big shots and we went to him in a lot of tough situations and he came through."

But if those two were pleasant surprises, point guard Freddie Barnes and Monroe Brown weren't. They failed to repeat their their stellar freshman performances, shooting only 38.8 percent and 35.6 percent, respectively, from the field. Parkhill said they may have fallen prey to the dreaded sophomore jinx.

"There might be something to that because when players come in as freshmen there's so much excitement and intensity," Parkhill said. "The thing that impressed me is they could have let their shooting game affect other parts of their game, but they didn't."

The Lions' success the last two years may have finally brought them national recognition. It may have helped with recruiting as Parkhill landed two recruits -- Dan McKenna from New Jersey and Elton Carter from Detroit before this season.

"Even after last year we noticed a big difference in how we were perceived when we went out recruiting and talked to high school coaches," Parkhill said. "After this year that will be just enhanced."

Even if the Lions didn't gain recognition from people outside of State College, they did from people in the area. People actually camped out for basketball ticket --something unheard of a few years ago.

"I was elated with the way the fans reacted to the team's success," Parkhill said. "To be honest, there were times I was disappointed the student body didn't fill their seats. But the students that did come created an atmosphere that I wondered was possible here because Penn State traditionally has laid-back fans."

But what made The Year of the Surprise for Parkhill wasn't the record or the recognition, but the trip from New York to State College after the NIT.

"I think the way the guys reacted after they beat New Mexico just made everything worthwhile," Parkhill said. "They were singing on the plane on the way back. It's the happiest I've ever seen them and they really deserve to feel that way."

"We were singing everything from the Flintstones to rap songs," Fogell said. "To end it on a win, just finishing the year, getting out of the Big Apple and the season ending was a relief."