Jalen Pickett enjoyed one of the most remarkable games in Penn State basketball history Tuesday night to lead the Nittany Lions to a very impressive victory.
Pickett scored 41 points -- tied for third most in program history -- and was incredibly efficient, hitting 15 of 20 shots from the field. Plus, he also got to shoot some free throws -- a rarity for him -- and made all six of those.
Pickett's performance led Penn State to a 93-81 win over Illinois at Bryce Jordan Center, snapping the Lions' four-game losing streak.
Penn State is now 6-9 in the Big Ten, and while its NCAA Tournament hopes remain slim, they at least showed signs of life in this one to prove they're not dead yet.
Pickett, one of the top players in the country and a potential All-American, was nothing short of phenomenal. His performance -- one of the best in college basketball all season -- also included eight assists.
Pickett's point total is the highest for any Big Ten player this season.
Jalen Pickett shared ball right to the end, even garbage time, kicking to Kanye Clary for 3 in final 90 seconds. And he STILL finished with 41 points (and 8 assists). Most pts by PSU since Gene Harris had school-record 46 in 1962. Ties with Jesse Arnelle (‘55) for 3rd all-time. pic.twitter.com/fkQ9MXFQbj
— David Jones (@djoneshoop) February 15, 2023
As you can see above, Pickett tied for the third most points in a game ever for Penn State, finishing five shy of the program record set by Gene Harris in December of 1961. Pickett became the first PSU player since Harris to reach 40 points, so that's a span of more than 61 years.
Pickett's career high is 46 points, which came in 2019 when he was a freshman at Siena. He came into Tuesday's game averaging 17.2 points, and his season high was 26 points, which he accomplished in three consecutive games against Iowa, Michigan and Purdue in early January.
Penn State clobbered the Illini for the second time this season. They won the first meeting back in Dec. 10 in Champaign, 74-59.
The Lions led this one from start to finish, never trailing. They had a monster first half with 53 points and led, 53-40, then kept Illinois at bay throughout the second half.
Seth Lundy added 15 points for Penn State, while Kanye Clary had 12 off the bench and Andrew Funk 10.
With Pickett's 15 of 20 leading the way, the Lions shot 58 percent from the field and made 12 of 28 from 3 (43 percent). That offensive efficiency came against one of the top defensive teams in the Big Ten.
Penn State (15-11, 6-9 Big Ten) had been on the NCAA Tournament bubble until its four-game losing streak. They've still got five games left in the regular season, and all five could be winnable if the Lions play anything like they did against Illinois.
Here's Penn State's remaining schedule:
• at Minnesota (7-16, 1-12 Big Ten)
• at Ohio State (11-14, 3-11)
• vs. Rutgers (17-9, 9-6)
• at Northwestern (18-7, 9-5)
• vs. Maryland (17-8, 8-6)
WATCH: Jalen Pickett press conference
WATCH: Micah Shrewsberry press conference
