UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. – Campbell opens the season on the road for the second-straight year Friday when the Camels face Big Ten Conference member Penn State in a 4:00 p.m. tip-off.
Audio coverage of the game will air on GoCamels.com and in the Sandhills area of North Carolina on WUAW 88.3 FM with
Evan Budrovich on the call. Video is available via the Big Ten Network Plus on a paid basis.
The Camels (19-18, 7-11 Big South in '16-17) return seven of their top eight scorers from a unit that made the program's first post-season appearance since 1992. After advancing to the Big South Championship game, Coach
Kevin McGeehan's squad earned a berth in the CollegeInsider.com post-season tournament and reached the quarterfinals.
CU was picked to finish fourth in the 2017-18 Big South Conference preseason poll.
Junior guard
Chris Clemons was named the Big South preseason player of the year and to the preseason Mid-Major All-America 2nd team by NBC Sports. He is the nation's top returning scorer (25.1) after finishing 2nd in the country in '16-17.
Red-shirt senior forward
Shane Whitfield (11.1 ppg), junior center
Andrew Eudy (Big South leading 70 blocks) and sophomore guard
Cory Gensler (7.2 ppg) all started at least 30 games last season for CU, which won 6 of its final 8 contests.
Penn State (15-18, 6-12 Big Ten in '16-17) returns all five starters from last season's squad. The Nittany Lions own an 11-1 record in their last 12 season openers, but fell to Albany 87-81 last year at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Camels vs. the Big Ten
Campbell is 1-2 all-time vs. Big Ten Conference members, including a 77-61 win at Iowa on Nov. 23, 2011, a 67-57 loss at Minnesota on Dec. 1, 1997 and, most recently, a 91-64 loss at 16th-ranked Ohio State on Nov. 26, 2014. No one on the current roster was on the team the last time CU faced a Big Ten opponent. CU stands 0-3 vs. "Power 5" conference members under Coach McGeehan, 0-2 vs. the Big Ten.
For Openers
Campbell stands 22-18 in season-opening games since joining the NCAA Division I ranks in 1977-78. CU has won 9 of its last 11 openers. CU also opened the 2016-17 campaign at a "Power Five" conference member, Oklahoma State, and fell 102-65 to the Cowboys. CU's only other season-opening loss in the last 11 years was a 70-60 setbacl Nov. 12, 2010 at No.-21 Virginia Tech.
Close to Home
Both Campbell and Penn State have had success recruiting in their respective back yards. Seven of the 15 players on the Campbell roster are products of North Carolina high schools. Eight Nittany Lions are Keystone State natives - with seven of those from the Philadelphia area.
Keystone State Ties
- Campbell head coach Kevin McGeehan is a native of the Philadelphia area, graduated from LaSalle College High School and Gettysburg College before earning his master's at West Chester University. He began his coaching career as an assistant and later head coach at Arcadia University (formerly Beaver College).
- Junior center Andrew Eudy (Lebanon, Pa.) is a 2014 graduate of Cedar Crest High School in Lebanon, Pa. He attended Fork Union Military Academy before enrolling at Campbell in 2015.
- Red-shirt senior Shane Whitfield (Raleigh, N.C.) began his collegiate career at Lehigh, where he played in 32 games and made 9 starts in 2013-14, before transferring to Campbell prior to his sophomore year.
Penn State Nuggets
- Five of Penn State's top six scorers return this year, including sophomores Tony Carr (13.2 ppg) and Lamar Stevens (12.7) and senior Shep Garner (12.0).
- Penn State led the Big Ten in forced turnovers in 2016-17 (14.8) PSU made more turnovers than its foes only four times in 33 games last year.
- Penn State stands 4-0 all-time against current members of the Big South Conference. The Nittany Lions are 1-0 vs. Gardner-Webb, 1-0 vs. Longwood and 2-0 vs. Radford.
Next
Campbell opens its home schedule Monday with a 7:00 p.m. tip-off against Columbia International at Gore Arena. Penn State hosts Fairleigh Dickinson Sunday at 5:00 p.m.
