UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's basketball team secured its third-straight win with a 77-68 victory over Quinnipiac Thursday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Jalen Pickett was just one assist shy of his second triple-double, finishing with game-high marks of 21 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists. Andrew Funk tallied 16 points, Camren Wynter chipped in 12 points and nine rebounds, and Michael Henn rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Penn State shot just 2-of-16 from beyond the arc in the first half but still managed to take a 33-23 lead into the break thanks to a defensive effort that held Quinnipiac to 7-of-36 (19.4 percent) shooting.
- The Lions closed the first half with a 13-3 run after the Bobcats knotted the score at 20-all with 6:39 on the clock. Pickett hit a jumper to break the tie and give the Lions the lead for good. Wynter had four points during that stretch, while Dread hit a 3-pointer with 34 seconds left in the half to make it a 10-point game.
- Pickett nearly had a double-double in the first half alone, totaling nine points and nine rebounds. He added five assists, a block and a steal. Wynter had eight points and six boards.
- After shooting 33 percent from the field and 13 percent from beyond the arc in the first half, Penn State was much more efficient in the second. The Lions shot 50 percent from the field and 31 percent on 3-pointers over the final 20 minutes.
- The Lions led by as much as 18 in the second half after taking a 54-36 lead on a layup by Henn with 13:19 to play. They still led by 13 (75-62) with 48 seconds left before the Bobcats scored three points on back-to-back possessions to cut their deficit to seven. The Lions closed the scoring with a pair of free throws by Funk with 16 seconds remaining.
GAME NOTES
- Penn State's 9-3 start is its best through 12 games since starting 10-2 during the 2019-20 season.
- Penn State held its opponent under 70 points for the 11th time this season, including all nine of its wins.
- The Lions, who entered the game as the nation's leader in assists-to-turnover ratio, had three turnovers compared to 17 assists against the Bobcats. The Lions didn't commit a turnover in the final 10:03 of play.
- Penn State was 88.2 percent (15-17) from the foul line. The Lions entered as the second-best free-throw shooting team in the Big Ten at 75.4 percent.
- The Lions held Quinnipiac to 31.0 percent shooting, fueled by a season-high seven blocks. Kebba Njie had four blocks in addition to his eight points in 19 minutes of playing time.
- Pickett notched his fourth double-double of the season and fifth 20-point game of the season.
- Henn's 11 points were a season high, as were his 14 minutes played.
- Myles Dread scored three points Thursday and now needs 15 to reach the 1,000-point milestone for his career.
- Wynter's two assists give him 601 for his career. He entered the game ranked seventh in career assists amongst active Division I players.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Micah Shrewsberry
Jalen Pickett and Michael Henn
UP NEXT
- The Nittany Lions will take a brief holiday break before returning to action in the non-conference finale on Thursday, Dec. 29 when Penn State hosts Delaware State at 2 p.m. inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
The 2022-23 Penn State men's basketball season is presented by Highmark Health.