University Park, Pa. — The Penn State men’s and women’s basketball teams will host Tipoff at Tailgreat in the Bryce Jordan Center at 5 p.m. on Saturday (Oct. 30), prior to the Penn State-Michigan football game. Admission to Tipoff at Tailgreat is free to the public.
The Tipoff at Tailgreat show will begin at 5:15 p.m. with introduction of both teams. The squads will then partake in special dance performances that will bring you back to the songs of yesteryear, as well as songs of today.
The performance of the basketball teams is part of Tailgreat, which takes place in the Bryce Jordan Center three hours before kickoff of each home football game. Tailgreat is free to the public and features performances by the Lionettes, Penn State cheerleaders and the Penn State Blue Band.
Penn State returns four senior starters and 75 percent of its scoring for coach Ed DeChellis’ eighth season at the helm. Two-time All-Big Ten point guard Talor Battle (Albany, N.Y.) will enter the season 613 points shy of eclipsing the Nittany Lions’ all-time scoring mark of 2,138 set by All-American Jesse Arnelle in 1955. Battle was recently named the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 list for the second straight season and is the top returning scorer in the Big Ten.
The Lady Lions will have a youthful roster this season with eight freshmen and sophomores. Headlining the list of returnees are senior Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) and sophomores Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas). Bentley was a third team All-Big Ten selection and a unanimous Big Ten All-Freshman team choice a year ago. The sophomore guard finished 10th in the Big Ten in field goal percentage (.445), fourth in assists (4.03) and 15th in steals (1.6). Trogele led the team and was 11th in the Big Ten in rebounding (6.2), while Greene rejected 55 shots as a rookie, placing her ninth on Penn State’s single-season chart. She finished second on the team and 12th in the Big Ten in rebounding (6.2 rpg).
The Lady Lions and Nittany Lions will make their first appearance in the Bryce Jordan Center for the 2010-11 season with an exhibition doubleheader on Sun., Nov. 7. The Lady Lions will take on Gannon at noon, followed by the Nittany Lions against East Stroudsburg at 2:30 p.m. The men’s team opens its 2010-11 campaign versus Lehigh on Friday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m., while the women kick off their home slate on Sun., Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. against Rider. Single-game tickets are available by calling 814-863-1000 or 800-NITTANY.
The PNC Flex Books are available again this year for $99. The Flex Book gives fans 12 vouchers, including one for the Coaches vs. Cancer game and one for the Pink Zone game, that can be redeemed for Nittany Lion and Lady Lion Basketball tickets in any combination.