Jalen Pickett Leads Penn State Out of the Wilderness
Penn State basketball had gone more than 60 years without a 40-point scorer. Then Jalen Pickett arrived at the Bryce Jordan Center on Tuesday with a "little bounce in my step" and made history.
Pickett, Penn State's all-American guard, scored a career-high 41 points on an historic night in lifting the Lions to a desperately needed 93-81 victory over Illinois.
Pickett's charge, which produced the program's first 40-point game since 1961, helped Penn State end a four-game losing streak and complete a season sweep of the Illini. Coach Micah Shrewsberry was unaware that Pickett had reached 40 until he looked up to the scoreboard after hearing a late ovation. As Pickett's biggest fan, Shrewsberry called the performance "special."
"Sometimes when you’re going through it you just need somebody special to have a special performance," Shrewsberry said, "and that’s what he did."
Pickett truly had a landmark night. He made 15 of 20 shots to become just the third Penn State player to record a 40-point game, joining record-holder Gene Harris (46 vs. Holy Cross in 1961) and Jesse Arnelle, who had four 40-point games in the 1950s. His 41 points are a season high among Big Ten players this season.
Pickett also became the first player to score 40 points at the Bryce Jordan Center and broke D.J. Newbill's former scoring record in a Big Ten game (37 vs. Purdue in 2015).
Fittingly, Pickett scored his 2,000th career point (between Penn State and Siena) late in the first half. Pickett is the nation's only active Division I player with 2,000 points, 600 rebounds and 700 assists.
"I'm just blessed, and I thank God every day to be able to play this game," Pickett said, "I'm so happy to be here."
Penn State (15-11, 6-9 Big Ten) ended its four-game losing streak behind Pickett's brilliance, a 57.9-percent team shooting rate and the warm embrace of home. The Lions improved to 12-2 at the Bryce Jordan Center, where they will play two of their five remaining regular-season games.
Penn State labored defensively and in shooting from the field during their slide, which included road losses at Purdue, Nebraska and Maryland. But on Tuesday, the Lions shot a stunning 62.5 percent in the first half, when Pickett was 10 for 12 and scored 24 points, already seven above his season average.
Pickett continued to dominate in the second half, making five of eight field goals and all six of his foul shots, which pleased Shrewsberry more than a little.
Pickett had attempted just one foul shot over the past four games combined, prompting Shrewsberry to say the guard was being "treated unfairly." The Lions in general drew more fouls, getting to the bonus early and finishing 15 for 19 from the line. The 19 free throws were the second-most for Penn State this season.
Despite the losing streak, Pickett said the Lions arrived for the game feeling good. Practices were positive, and Pickett felt something different.
"I saw smiles for the first time in a while, so I'm not surprised by the result," he said.
According to Hollinger's Game Score metric, Pickett played a nearly perfect game, registering a 37.8 score on the 0-40 scale.
"My teammates kept telling me to shoot and cheering me on," Pickett said. "That's always a good feeling, too."
Penn State seeks to get on a run when it returns to the road for games against the Big Ten's bottom two teams. The Lions visit Minnesota (1-12 conference) on Saturday and Ohio State (3-11) on Feb. 23.
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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.
