Before the season, Penn State men's basketball coach Mike Rhoades said "Why not?" when referring to the Nittany Lions' chances to make the NCAA Tournament. Though it's far too early to entertain that idea, Penn State is off to strong non-conference start.

The Penn State men’s basketball team continued its strong start to the season with a victory over the UMBC Retrievers. The Nittany Lions scored 100-plus points for the second straight game, beating UMBC 103-54 Friday night at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Penn State plays host in this match-up as we continue our College Basketball odds series with a UMBC-Penn State prediction and pick.

Penn State entered its second game of the 2024-25 campaign with a sizable advantage over visiting UMBC. The Retrievers, led by former Nittany Lions’ interim coach Jim Ferry, had no answer for this year’s combination of size and skill.

The Nittany Lions get their second tipoff of the season against a familiar coach in Jim Ferry’s UMBC Retrievers. Having scored 108 points in their last outing, and against a team that plays uptempo, don’t be surprised if this is another high scoring affair.