Penn State hoops celebrates CVC milestone, pending summer workout start

The concourse at Medlar Field was buzzing on Thursday evening. A kickoff reception to Penn State basketball’s annual two-day Coaches vs. Cancer Golf Tournament, head coach Mike Rhoades turned attendees’ attention to a new milestone. 

Welcoming program alumnus, community and university dignitaries, and business leaders, all helping to make up the hundreds of golfers that would participate in Friday’s tournament at the Blue and White Courses, the effort to support the American Cancer Society and its fight against cancer took another step.

“It’s just a special event. To go over a total of $5 million, we’re one of only four chapters in the country of Coaches vs. Cancer that has a career total of over $5 million,” Rhoades told BWI. “In a marketplace like State College and Penn State, that says a lot about our community and the people.”

Amidst the celebration and continuation of Penn State basketball’s signature philanthropic event, the Nittany Lions are concurrently gearing up for their return to work around the facility. 

The group that does, however, will be markedly different from the one that closed out the 2025-26 season. Sturggling to a 12-20 overall record, losing the first 10 games of Big Ten competition, the Nittany Lions have since dramatically reshaped themselves in the aftermath.

Welcoming back big man Ivan Juric as the centerpiece of next year’s roster, he stands as the only returning scholarship player. Along with the graduation of Josh Reed, the Nittany Lions witnessed the transfer exits of significant contributors Kayden Mingo and Freddie Dilione, who were followed to the portal by Eli Rice, Dominick Stewart, Melih Tunca, Mason Blackwood, Justin Houser, Tibor Mirtic, and Sasa Ciani. 

Counterbalancing the exodus, Rhoades and the Nittany Lions’ staff hqave since welcomed in Roko Prkacin and Francois Wibaut from the international market. Experienced collegiate players Jay Rodgers, Brant Byers, Roberts Blums, and Timothy Oboh round out ther other scholarship caliber additions this offseason. Other pick-ups to round out the roster include Thomas Allard, Aleksandar Zecevic, and Andy Gemao, who join walk-ons Chris Lotito and Reggie Grodin.

Though details are yet to be finalized for some of the additions, the group is set to report soon for the beginning of its summer workouts. 

“We report June 10, we’ll get going. We’ll do our medical testing and all that stuff. And we’ll do all the academic stuff. And then June 15, we’ll start our eight weeks and we’ll go all the way til around August 12 is the last day of classes in the summer. So we’ll have a good eight weeks,” said Rhoades. “Lots of new faces. Really excited, I like this group. Older, high character, a lot of skill. We got a lot of length. 

“Now, it’s about just meshing them all summer long and bonding, and just building a our armor, as I like to say in the summer.”

A jumping off point for the summer and the work ahead, the occasion served as a reunion of sorts and a last lead-in to what’s ahead.

“I’m just a steward of it as the coach, Coach Parkhill started it, Coach DeChellis got it going to a whole other level, and Coach Dunn. I’m just super, super honored to be a part of it in the way that I am now here,” said Rhoades. “But it’s the community, it’s the Penn Staters that are about the right stuff. This disease hits us all, and everybody here tonight, the golf tournament, and what they do all year long for Penn State Coaches Vs. Cancer, it is impactful, it really is.”

---

Talk about it with our premium members in the Lions Den message board, here.