OH DANNY BOY

Besides having an awesome first name, Danny Morrissey is one of those players that you genuinely root for. You don't just root for the team, you root for him to succeed. Although it feels like he's been playing since the Lions Sweet 16 trip, the 24-year-old senior only has a handful of games left and Nittany Nation will severely miss him once he's gone.

The 6'3", 190-pound shooting guard is a red shirt senior this year, and although his playing minutes have been declining since 2006, it's impossible to measure what he's meant on and off the court to the Nittany Lions.

Besides being the Lions top three-point scorer the past three seasons, Morrissey has been one of the Big Ten's toughest shooters to guard. Since he entered Division One basketball, Morrissey has 27 career games with three or more treys and has scored in double-digits 37 times. Unfortunately, after 30 games and 231 points as a true freshman, the shooting guard suffered a patella tendon dislocation in his left knee at a team practice early in the season his sophomore year. By the end of that week, Morrissey underwent surgery and was granted a medical red shirt by the NCAA.

Although the senior came back better than ever in 2006-2007 (44% from three point range), his shooting touch has declined over the past two seasons. To his credit he's been suffering from a sore and swollen right knee, however Morrissey has only put up 9 points on 3-16 shooting during his last five games.

This 'un-Morrissey' like behavior out of the Cleveland, OH native has had many people basically writing him off the team for the remainder of his tenure at Penn State. This, I could not disagree with more. Even when his shots aren't falling, Morrissey has been one of the most energetic and vocal guys on the Lions squad. Often over-sized on the floor, the co-captain has never been one to back down from a charge or to hang his head after missing a shot. He wasn't just born with that sweet stroke, he's known for being the first one in and the last one out of the gym after practice, as he's constantly working on his shot.

"I've seen minutes slip my whole career," Morrissey said to the Daily Collegian. "As long as I'm on the court and I contributed in some kind of fashion to us winning the game, that's really what I feel good about. If those guys play well, they'll get minutes. It just comes down to whoever's gonna get on the court and help us win a game. That's all I care about."

However, as the team heads to his home state of Ohio for a key match-up against the Buckeyes on Tuesday...I have a strange feeling he cares about performing a little more than he's letting on.

Although the emergence of Cameron Woodyard and Chris Babb have taken some of Morrissey's minutes during the second half of the season, you can be sure he'll be playing with something to prove Tuesday as it's his last game at Ohio State. Playing for his last shot at an NCAA tournament berth, the senior will have over 50 friends and family in attendance for the nationally televised contest. The six-day break after the Illinois win will also benefit Morrissey, as the season has played its toll on the guards knees.

As senior day quickly approaches, keep a keen eye on number 33 on the court. He still has a lot to prove and you can be sure that with less than a month left to play as a Nittany Lion, the senior will give you ever ounce of everything he's got. It's the only way he's ever played.

That's why I'll be one of the first to give this kid a standing ovation on Saturday for Senior Day. Rough season or not, he's earned it.

Video from www.gopsb.com