Youngstown State Penguins

The Youngstown State Penguins play at the Beeghly Center in Youngstown, Ohio, representing a blue-collar steel-belt city with a scrappy, resilient basketball identity to match. The program has long been a battler in the Horizon League, coming agonizingly close to breakthrough moments across its history. Youngstown State's fanbase is tight-knit and loyal, showing up for a program that treats every close game like a statement. The Penguins have steadily built momentum in recent seasons toward the postseason success that has eluded them for decades.

Youngstown State has never reached the NCAA Division I Tournament, but has come within a single win twice, in the 1985 Ohio Valley Conference tournament final and the 1998 Mid-Continent Conference tournament final. Earlier in program history, the Penguins were a fixture of Division II and NAIA postseason play, reaching the NAIA Elite Eight in both 1956 and 1957 under coach Dom Rosselli. The 2022-23 season marked a milestone: Youngstown State won its first-ever conference championship, taking the Horizon League regular-season title and earning the program's first NIT appearance.