VOTE for Pickett starting Friday, March 10
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced Penn State men's basketball guard Jalen Pickett as one of five finalists for the 2023 Bob Cousy Award Monday afternoon. The prestigious award recognizes the top point guard in Division I men's college basketball.
Penn State fans can support Pickett by participating in Fan Voting, presented by Dell Technologies, starting Friday, March 10 on hoophallawards.com. The Fan Vote will count as one committee vote during the final selection process.
Pickett, who was already named to the Wooden Award National Ballot and the Oscar Robertson Trophy Late Season Watch List last week, is the only player in the country averaging at least 18 points (18.0) per game, seven rebounds per game (7.3) and seven assists (7.0) per game. Only one men's college basketball player in the last 30 years (since 1992-93 season) has finished the season averaging 18/7/7. Michigan State's Denzel Valentine finished the 2015-16 season averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game en route to AP National Player of the Year accolades.
Pickett ranks in the top five nationally in both assists per game (7.0) and assist-to-turnover ratio (3.27) while engineering a Penn State offense that ranks third nation in fewest turnovers per game (8.8) and 15th in effective field goal percentage (.561).
Pickett has led Penn State to 19 wins this season and a 10-10 mark in conference play, just the eighth time in Penn State's 31 Big Ten seasons that the Nittany Lions have finished .500 or better in conference play. The six-foot-four guard played his best in Big Ten play, averaging 19.2 points per game, 7.7 rebounds per game and 6.6 assists per game.
The Rochester, N.Y. native's season highlights include a 41-point game, a 32-point game, 12 20-point games, six double-doubles and one triple-double. He has already set a Penn State single-season assists record through 31 games this season, dishing 216 assists to this point.
Pickett has put together a historic collegiate career as the only Division I men's college basketball player in AT LEAST the last 37 years to have accumulated marks of 2,000+ career points, 700+ career rebounds and 800+ career assists. Pickett currently owns career marks of 2,111 points, 732 rebounds and 814 assists.
The Bob Cousy Award, named after Class of 1971 Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic and Holy Cross guard Bob Cousy, is now in its 20th year. The finalists will be presented to Cousy and the Hall of Fame's selection committee this month. The Selection Committee for the Bob Cousy Award is composed of top men's college basketball personnel including media members, head coaches, sports information directors and Hall of Famers. The winner of the 2023 Bob Cousy Award will be presented on a to be determined date, along with the other four members of the Men's Starting Five.
2023 Bob Cousy Award Finalists
Markquis Nowell - Kansas State
Tyler Kolek - Marquette
Boo Buie - Northwestern
Jalen Pickett - Penn State
Yuri Collins - St. Louis
Pickett and the Nittany Lions begin postseason play Thursday when Penn State takes on Illinois in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament. Tipoff from the United Center in Chicago is set for 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT on the Big Ten Network.
The 2022-23 Penn State men's basketball season is presented by Highmark Health.
