Penn State's Kayden Mingo Continues Impressive Freshman Campaign

The Penn State basketball team has had its ups and downs this year, but the group has still managed to achieve a 9-4 record to begin the 2025-26 campaign.

The Nittany Lions have fallen at the hands of Pittsburgh, Providence and Indiana, in addition to a four-point loss to No. 9-ranked Michigan State. Despite a few tough defeats, Penn State has multiple big-time matchups in the coming weeks that could help the team gain momentum heading into the second half of the season.

Big Ten play kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 3, and Mike Rhoades' team will meet No. 20 Illinois, No. 2 Michigan and No. 5 Purdue to start league play. To remain competitibe in those contests, Penn State will need solid performances from star freshman Kayden Mingo, who has been one of the team's top players this season.

In the Nittany Lions' most recent win, a 90-67 triumph against North Carolina Central, Mingo logged a game-high 19 points while shooting 8-of-12 from the field and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. The first-year guard also chipped in 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 6 steals while committing 2 turnovers.

This continues what has been a strong freshman campaign for the Farmingdale, New York, native. In his first 13 college games, Mingo is averaging 14.8 points, 4.5 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game while shooting 49% from the field and 23.3% from 3-point range.

Mingo has topped 20 points twice to start his college career, and scored in double figures 11 times.

Listed at 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds, the freshman size could be a concern for NBA teams, but Mingo has shown the ability to be a good scorer and defensive playmaker early in his time with PSU.

In addition to being a smaller guard, Mingo isn't a threatening 3-point shooter, and would have to improve from beyond the arc to become a more well-rounded threat on offense. Still, the 18-year-old's consistency as a scorer should be enough to garner attention from scouts.

Rated the No. 34 overall player and No. 4 combo guard in the 2025 recruiting class by 247Sports, Mingo is yet another member of what has been an excellent crop of freshman. While Mingo hasn't earned the same recognition as other first-year guards like Mikel Brown Jr., Kingston Flemings or Darius Acuff Jr., the Penn State standout has certainly helped boost his draft stock early in the year.

If Mingo continues to perform well in Big Ten play, he could earn a spot in the 2026 NBA Draft.

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