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Report: Penn State hires VCU’s Mike Rhoades as head men’s basketball coach

The Nittany Lions have their next guy.

By Chinmay Vaidya
VCU v Saint Mary’s
Head coach Mike Rhoades of the Virginia Commonwealth Rams looks on late in the game against the St. Mary’s Gaels during the first round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at MVP Arena on March 17, 2023 in Albany, New York.
Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images

The Penn State Nittany Lions have hired VCU’s Mike Rhoades as its new head basketball coach, per Jon Rothstein. Penn State made the tournament for the first time this year since 2011 under Micah Shrewsberry, but he left the program in the offseason to join Notre Dame.

Rhoades played college basketball at Lebanon Valley, so he’s somewhat familiar with the area although he hasn’t really been near Pennsylvania during any of his coaching stops. His resume is excellent though, with success at all of his stops. His stint with Rice ended early when he left for VCU, but he was turning the Owls around. He took the Rams to three NCAA tournaments and one NIT during four years.

Given Rhoades’ success in reaching the postseason and building programs up, Penn State feels like a strong landing spot. The Nittany Lions will be able to spend money and have some decent recruiting grounds with Philadelphia nearby. The Big Ten is going to be a massive player in the overall college sports landscape, and Penn State is a strong brand. Rhoades should have enough resources to turn what has regularly been seen as a basketball wasteland into a relevant program.

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