MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — The last time the Penn State Harrisburg men's basketball received votes in the D3Hoops.com rankings, the calendar said March of 2020. The Lions had a program record 21 wins, won the NEAC Championship and also a NCAA Tournament game. Last year they could not build on that because they didn't have a season. They didn't even have gym time as a team. This year though they are back and right now, maybe better than ever.
Inside their gym the pace is fast and quick as the staff barks out calls and the team answers on cue. To them their success this year is really nothing special.
"There isn't really any secret, we just go there have fun and play together," deadpans Brandon Coleman.
(KALISTA)
The senior forward from nearby Northeastern High School makes it sound almost like a pick up game on the playground.
The reality is, it is far from that.
Right now the team sits at 14-1, and are once again receiving votes in the poll. Not bad considering they missed more than 12 months of work.
"When we got back here, our guys love each other, they love Penn State they love their program," smiles head coach Don Friday. The coach from Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania knows a thing or two about grinding and so does his team.
It has been a total commitment and buy in from this group and a lot of bonding off the court as well as finding their own ways to stay sharp.
For Coleman one thing stood out when the team was basically without a home gym.
"Team chemistry, maintain our relationships and stuff. (We) try to keep it in everybody's head that we are working toward being the best team we can possibly be."
Not an easy task considering how easy it is to move when things when get tough. Which leads to a major source of pride for the program.
"We did an incredible job of keeping our guys engaged and focused and we did lose one guy to the transfer portal and no one quit," beams Friday.
"That is a win in itself."
And he is right, this group has stuck together both on and off court during challenging times.
The goal claim their second conference title and advance deep into March. all while carrying a chip on their shoulder.
"That first championship nobody was really around to see it. If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it does it make it sound," asks Friday.
The answer is yes, but to know how it fell you have to see it.
This team knows what it takes to be successful and they are more than "present" in the moment.