Penn State hires VCU’s Rhoades as men’s basketball coach

Penn State hired VCU’s Mike Rhoades on Wednesday to be its new men’s basketball coach, bringing in the Pennsylvania native to take over a program coming off its first NCAA Tournament appearance in more than a decade.

A person involved in the decision told The Associated Press that Rhoades is receiving a seven-year contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because terms of the deal were not immediately released by the school.

Rhoades, from Mahanoy City in Eastern Pennsylvania, replaces Micah Shrewsberry, who was hired away by Notre Dame last week.

Shrewsberry, an Indiana native, was at Penn State for two seasons. The Nittany Lions went 23-14 this season, reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 and won an NCAA game for the first time since 2001.

Rhoades, 50, was 129-61 in six seasons as head coach at VCU, including three NCAA Tournament bids. He also spent three seasons at Rice, going 23-12 in the final year with the Owls before returning to VCU.

He was an assistant at the Richmond, Virginia, school from 2009-14 under then-head coach Shaka Smart.