Less than a month before Penn State men’s basketball travels to Europe, coach Patrick Chambers announced Tuesday the appointment of Dwayne Anderson, captain of Villanova’s 2009 NCAA Final Four team, as an assistant coach on his staff.
Chambers has long been on the hunt for a possible replacement for former Nittany Lion assistant Eugene Burroughs who left the program in May for personal reasons.
Anderson will take on his first collegiate coaching position after four years playing professionally in Europe. A 2009 graduate of Villanova University with a degree in sociology, Anderson was coached by Chambers, a former Associate Head Coach in the Villanova program. While at Villanova, Anderson made four straight NCAA appearances and reached the Sweet 16 three times.
“Dwayne is an absolute winner and a leader, and we are fortunate to have someone of his caliber joining our staff,” Chambers said. “He is fresh off a very successful playing career both in college and professionally in Europe and will be terrific connecting and communicating with the current and future players in our program.”
“My family and I are very excited to join the Nittany Lion family and help the program as much as possible,” Anderson said. “Coach Chambers means the world to me. He is like family and I am excited for the opportunity to begin my coaching career working with him.”
Chambers took his time with the hire, going through summer camps and recruiting periods without a full staff. Even so the Nittany Lions had an active offseason picking up several recruits including Philadelphia prospect Shep Garner. Adding Anderson to the fold, only adds more credibility to the growing Penn State presence in Philadelphia. What Anderson lacks in veteran coaching experience he makes up for in credibility in one of Penn State’s recruiting pipelines.
