Penn State men's basketball coach Ed DeChellis will return next season, athletic director Tim Curley said in a statement through a text message.
Men's basketball sports information director Brian Siegrist sent Curley's statement in which Curley backed DeChellis, saying "I believe we're better than our record shows. Ed and I share the same vision for the program."
DeChellis signed a three-year contract extension in the fall that will take him through the 2013-14 season.
He came under scrutiny with an 0-12 start to conference play this year -- Penn State's worst start since joining the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions' season ended Thursday with a 76-55 loss to Minnesota in the first round of the Big Ten tournament that dropped their final record to 11-20 (3-16 Big Ten).
In the statement Curley said, "Yes, Ed will continue to be our head coach. I like the way he runs our program, his assistant coaches and players in the program."
With no seniors on this year's squad, DeChellis will get his whole team back next season and will likely receive a lift from incoming recruit Taran Buie, the half-brother of Lions' leading scorer Talor Battle.
"I have complete confidence in Ed and his staff," Curley said in the statement. "No one will work harder or bring greater passion to making the necessary progress."
Next season would be DeChellis' eighth at Penn State. In his first seven, he has a 95-123 overall record.
