Forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser (14) dunks the ball during the Penn State men’s basketball game against Buffalo at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024 in University Park, Pa. The Nittany Lions defeat the Bulls 87-64.
Katelyn Supancik
To compete in the Big Ten, effective size in the paint is a must.
Thus, when a Northern Illinois 7-footer entered his name into the transfer portal on March 21, 2024, coach Mike Rhoades jumped on that opportunity, earning a commitment from forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser just 26 days later. Konan Niederhauser has proved he can be that go-to guy in the paint, creating numerous highlight-reel-worthy plays throughout 2024-25.
“He had the ability, we all saw that from Day 1,” Rhoades said. “I just think he picked the right place that could utilize his skill set, the style of play and a versatile big guy, he was able to show that off. So, he made a great decision.”
While at Northern Illinois, Konan Niederhauser never had the numbers that jumped off the page for a player in the MAC, averaging 7.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 2023-24. However, Rhoades saw one aspect in the Fraschels, Switzerland, native’s game that couldn’t be recorded on any stat sheet.
“You hope when you bring guys in — freshmen, transfers, guys come in your program — that they’re hungry, they have hunger to get better, they have urgency to get better,” Rhoades said. “I just felt really good about when we’re recruiting Yanic that he wants to really get after it, work at it, and he really has.”
Rhoades’ inkling on Konan Niederhauser’s work ethic was proven correct as the forward always wants to improve his game. Whether Konan Niederhauser is facing adversity or not, he’s consistently looking to build off of his performances.
“When he’s had good days, he’s built on it,” Rhoades said. “When he’s had a bad day or a bad game, he’s taken it to heart to get better. I think his approach, being here from June 6 of last year, is a reason why he’s turned into a player at this level that he has.”
Basketball can be a mental game, and Konan Niederhauser understands that. To find success throughout his first season donning the blue and white, Konan Niederhauser changed his approach to be much more mentally focused.
“I took a different approach this year,” Konan Niederhauser said. “I feel like going into the games, going into practices, just having my mind fully on basketball.”
On top of focusing his mind on basketball when the time calls for it, Konan Niederhauser is receptive to his coaches, helping him improve as a player.
“He’s very coachable, I think that’s helped,” Rhoades said. “The way we’ve poured into him and his teammates, I think he’s a guy that just really took great advantage of that throughout the summer and preseason.”
A lack of size has been a typical issue with Penn State, often hindering it from truly competing in the Big Ten. However, even as early as the team’s season opener against Binghamton, a change to that issue was noticed.
“I feel he’s a great addition to our team,” forward Zach Hicks said following Konan Niederhauser’s 16-point performance against the Bearcats on Nov. 4. “Last year, I think the one thing that was missing most was our down-low offense and pressure around the rim. To add him just makes the team sync in more.”
Even though Penn State has endured a turbulent season, the lack of size hasn’t been a critical issue as it has many times in years past. Konan Niederhauser has averaged 12.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game this season by often using his aggression in the paint.
“I just want to show what I can do, so I got to be more aggressive in practice,” Konan Niederhauser said. “When I’m mad, I play better because I’m more aggressive, like trying to score more. I’m not trying to be mad, but I’m just trying to have this mentality to be more aggressive, trying to score every time. I see it work, so I just gotta do it.”
Since the start of 2025, the Nittany Lions have won just four games. To some, a rough patch in a season can be deflating, but Konan Niederhauser has continued his grind to improve despite the lack of the team winning.
“Even in the last month, the last two months, he has a hunger to get better,” Rhoades said.
While Konan Niederhauser has flashed a strong ability to dominate the paint, it’s still possible that he hasn’t reached his ceiling just yet, which could lead to even more dominating performances by the 7-footer.
“I think he’s hungry to do it even to a higher level, which is refreshing,” Rhoades said.
However, part of that ceiling hinges on whether Konan Niederhauser takes a certain step that Rhoades wants to see, and the forward didn’t flash much of it throughout his 2024-25 campaign.
“We want to be able to have all our bigs be able to shoot the basketball to an extent,” Rhoades said. “He’s really improved his free throw shooting. He’s improved his mechanics. That doesn’t mean it shows up in the next game, that takes time, but he’s open to working on it.”
Konan Niederhauser has knocked down free throws at 67.2% this season, which tracks to become a career high by more than 6%. While he saw improvements at the stripe, the forward hasn’t consistently showcased a playstyle in which he takes more mid-range or long-range shots.
Transitioning from the MAC to the Big Ten is a substantial uptick in competition. Konan Niederhauser shot the ball more with Northern Illinois, but he wanted to make sure he had the physicality needed to compete in the Big Ten in his first season in Happy Valley.
“I would say I was more focused being more physical,” Konan Niederhauser said.
An issue Konan Niederhauser had with his game with Northern Illinois last season was not taking full advantage of his large frame, possibly hinting at the reason why his numbers weren’t as high with the Huskies.
“Last year, I was shooting way more, but I feel I was hesitating like using my body going to the rim and just being more physical to finish,” Konan Niederhauser said. “So this year, I put my focus more on being around the rim, being able to rebound more, being able to finish more around the rim.”
Putting his focus on becoming a strong paint presence worked out well for Konan Niederhauser with Penn State, and he knows it, but it came at the cost of not thinking to take more shots from a further distance.
“That was so successful,” Konan Niederhauser said. “I was not thinking to shoot as much this year than I was doing last year.”
However, Konan Niederhauser hasn’t forgotten the shooting aspect of his game, often working overtime behind the scenes to bring it back into his main skillset.
“He comes back at night and shoots with some of his teammates a lot,” Rhoades said. “That’s the process you have to put in, and you gotta when it comes to shooting and proving your range and increasing your range. You gotta put in the work when nobody’s watching.”
When developing a trait, repetition can be key, and Rhoades highlighted how if Konan Niederhauser puts in enough work on his shooting, it’ll eventually work into his playstyle during a game.
“You get to a point where you do it in practice, and then it becomes what you’re doing, and then it shows up in games consistently and making it consistently,” Rhoades said. “That’s the next step for a guy like (Konan Niederhauser).”
If Konan Niederhauser successfully develops a strong shooting trait on top of his already dominating paint presence, he would become an even more integral piece to the puzzle of Rhoades’ system. As a junior, Konan Niederhauser will have the opportunity to return to the Nittany Lions next season, and if he does, Penn State fans could see more shooting from a further distance out of the 7-footer.