The game was marked on my calendar since September. I knew it would be arguably the most anticipated game of the fall semester in Happy Valley.
When the sun came beaming through my window and woke me at 11 a.m. on Sunday after just a few hours of sleep, reality finally hit me: I would miss the Eagles-Steelers game because I had to cover the Penn State men's basketball team's exhibition game against a bottom-of-the-PSAC conference, Div. II East Stroudsburg team. Just what every Philly fan has in mind for an afternoon in which two top-ranked intrastate professional football teams would go head-to-head.
In the end, I couldn't have asked for a better afternoon to be removed from the TV, shunned from friends from Pittsburgh, or for that matter, I-cheer-against-Eagles fans, and away from my phone, which I was certain had some messages, bustin' my chops.
And, believe it or not, the way the Nittany Lions played added a little flavor to my somber weekend of sports. Usually it's an Eagles' win on Sunday that picks me up after a Penn State football loss on Saturday.
And to think that I'd be relying on the formerly 9-19 basketball team to provide some entertainment seems rather bizarre.
The final score of 87-46 didn't impress me because I know this is exhibition season and I know this is East Stroudsburg, but so do the players.
"I think it was a good scrimmage to see where we're at as far as chemistry," junior forward Aaron Johnson said. "But at the same time we can't get complacent because that's not the kind of level we're gonna be playing against all year."
Of course the 16 turnovers, 63 percent free throw shooting and inability to execute against the full-court press are signs this team has a long way to go.
But it's things like coach Ed DeChellis replacing all five of his starters with reserves eight minutes into the game. It's the fact that, despite having five freshmen on the court at one time, the Lions did not fall apart. There are actually players to sub for guards Marlon Smith and Ben Luber, who saw more time on the bench in Sunday's game than they did all last season.
Although the attendance at the Bryce Jordan Center was said to be 5,522, the 500 people that actually showed up were treated to a few dunks from freshmen Geary Claxton and Brandon Hassell.
The nine students in the student section, aside from the group of 20 "Nitwits," got a taste of freshman Mike Walker's aggressiveness as he dove head first over the chairs and sprawled out on the floor in front of them -- despite nursing two broken fingers.
This was just after Walker launched a pass from the baseline all the way down court to Smith, who was sandwiched by two defenders.
With Smith struggling from the field yesterday, freshman guard Danny Morrissey added to perimeter shooting, or rather the lack thereof, after hitting 3-of-3 from 3-point range.
And then there's Johnson, looking slimmer and more athletic than ever, who brings intensity to the floor and provides the strongest and perhaps only solid inside presence. He's the vocal leader, the moral support and the guy who won't let the Lions put their heads down after a few consecutive losses. As a remnant of the Jerry Dunn era, Johnson won't let this team slip back into that funk from which it's supposedly far removed.
I think this team DeChellis built is a truly different team than last year. Forward John Kelly shows up to practice an hour early to improve his quickness and agility.
In previous years, practice wasn't fun for these guys who devoted their whole lives to the sport. At practice yesterday, there were plenty of smiles and joking around because this team believes it's on its way up and basketball is fun again -- for now.
Granted, there will still be the blowouts, sloppy games, and not-so-stellar perimeter shooting, but all in all, this team can provide some entertainment -- especially on an afternoon in which there were no T.O. endzone dances as the Eagles fell to the Steelers 27-3.
