Penn State had a big night from beyond the three-point line as the Nittany Lions opened the men’s basketball season with a 93-68 win against Winthrop on Monday night in the Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State set a program record for three-point shots made with 18 three-pointers in the game.
[autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] was the leading man for the Nittany Lions with 23 points and five rebounds with five assists. Transfer Andrew Funk hit six of the record-18 three-pointers in his Penn State debut
Head coach Micah Shrewsberry was pleased with how the game played out.
“We’re not overdoing it,” Shrewsberry said in his postgame comments following the win. “We just want to be solid and disciplined in our spots. And that’s when good things happen for you.”
Penn State started the game with [autotag]Seth Lundy[/autotag], [autotag]Caleb Dorsey[/autotag], Camren Wynter, Funk, and Pickett. Lundy had a double-digit with 10 points and Dorsey led the team with six rebounds. [autotag]Myles Dread[/autotag] picked up 12 points off the bench by hitting four of the team’s three-pointers.
Shrewsberry opened his postgame comments by admitting he was feeling a little bit nervous about the outcome when the game started.
“Coming into this game and walking out onto the court, I was nervous. I was nervous because I recognized, and you guys may not realize this because of how the game went, but it’s a good team. It’s a good program,” Shrewsberry said of Winthrop. “We’re going to look up in March and that team’s got 23-24 wins to its belt. And that’s not by accident.”
But it was hard for Shressberry not to walk away from Monday night’s game feeling good about what his team accomplished.
“I think the anxiety part was I wanted us to play well,” Shrewsberry said. “I wanted to show up tonight and I’m happy for the most part. I’m happy with our play.”
Next up for Penn State is a home game on Thursday night against Loyola (Md.). Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. ET on B1G+.
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