Tag: Jalen Pickett

Penn State’s season ends against Texas in the second round

Penn State bows out of the NCAA Basketball Tournament in loss to Texas

Regardless of what the results were going into the NCAA Tournament, this team electrified Penn State fans across the country.

An amazing early March winning streak was capped with a run to the Big Ten Tournament where they were a possession away from winning the championship game. That firmly put them into March Madness for the first time since 2011.

The team wasn’t just satisfied with being in the dance, they wanted to perform. And they did in the first round, dominating seventh-seeded Texas A&M for their first tournament win since 2011.

Unfortunately, the magical season came to an end on Saturday night as the Nittany Lions fell to the two-seeded Texas Longhorns, 71-66.

The matchup was going to be tough for the undersized Penn State squad. Texas has been playing its best basketball of the season down the stretch. They dominated the Big 12 Tournament and won the championship in a decisive manner.

After Penn State’s hot shooting night on Thursday, they started this game off cold. They were held to single digits for the first 12 minutes of the game. Their defense was the only reason why they were still able to keep it close early on. Despite only nine points 12 minutes in, the deficit was two points.

Texas was able to get some separation right before half. Penn State went into the locker room trailing 23-31.

There were moments in the second half where it looked like the Longhorns were going to run away with the game. Penn State wasn’t shooting well and they could not stop Texas big man Dylan Disu.

However, they kept hanging around and hanging around, continuing to compete on both ends of the floor.

With just over six minutes remaining, they cut it to 54-55 after back-to-back threes by senior [autotag]Myles Dread[/autotag].

One minute later, Penn State took their first lead since two minutes into the game after [autotag]Camren Wynter[/autotag] hit two free throws. In the next possession, [autotag]Seth Lundy[/autotag] stole the ball and scored a layup on the other end to put the Nittany Lions up 58-55.

Texas called a timeout to regroup. After the timeout, it was Disu time. He scored six straight points to put the Longhorns back up by three. They continued on a 10-0 run that put them up by seven points with under a minute remaining.

That was the nail in the coffin for Penn State.

The matchup was a difficult one going into the game. If they shot the ball like they did against Texas A&M, it could have been a winnable one. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

Penn State finished the game shooting 41.7% from the field and 28.6% from three-point range. [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag], who was sensational in the first round, was 5-14 from the field and 2-10 from three.

Wynter had a team high 16 points. Dread, the all-time Penn State leader in games played, scored 12 points in his final game. [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the last game of his sensational college career.

Disu had a game-high 28 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. Sir’Jabari Rice added 13 points off the bench and Marcus Carr joined them in double digits with 10.

It was a tough way for the season to end, knowing that if a couple shots that are normally made go into the hoop this game, Penn State could be playing in the Sweet Sixteen. But that’s the fickle game of basketball. Sometimes they fall, and sometimes they don’t.

Now, all eyes are going to be on what Penn State will look like next season. This roster was the most experienced in the country. Losing the multiple impact seniors will require a roster overhaul to bring players in from the transfer portal to pair with the talented underclassmen.

All of that is a moot point if Penn State can’t keep coach Micah Shrewsberry in State College. It should be a top priority of the athletic department to secure him as head coach for the long haul.

There is clearly an appetite for Penn State basketball and having an elite head coach is the start of building a consistent program. Hopefully, the athletic department sees it the same way.

Let’s celebrate this team, players and coaching staff for giving Penn State fans an amazing season!

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Photos from Penn State’s NCAA Basketball Tournament second-round game

Check out the photo album from Penn State’s second-round matchup in the NCAA Basketball Tournament vs. Texas

Penn State’s men’s basketball season saw its season come to a close with a loss to the Texas Longhorns in the second round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on Saturday night. A good effort saw the Nittany Lions put up a good respectable fight against the region’s second-seed and a win was there for the taking in the final minutes of the game, but Texas proved to be the better team and was able to capitalize on miscues by Penn State to pave their own path to the Sweet 16.

It was a tough night offensively for the Nittany Lions with three-point shots simply not falling for the team most of the night, a stark contrast to their first-round victory over Texas A&M. But the Nittany Lions took fans on a fun ride over the past month and the future could remain bright for more postseason fun like this in years to come as the program heads into a critical offseason.

Here are some of the best photos from Penn State’s second-round matchup with Texas from Des Moines, Iowa on Saturday.

NCAA Tournament, Second Round: How to watch Penn State vs. Texas

How to watch Penn State vs. Texas in the NCAA basketball tournament on Saturday.

For the first time since 2001, the Penn State men’s basketball team is playing for a spot in the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

After a big win over Texas A&M in the first round on Thursday night, [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag], Andrew Funk and the Nittany Lions take on Big 12 Tournament champion Texas in the second round on Saturday evening in Des Moines, Iowa.

During Penn State’s hot streak, the team has won six of its last seven games against NCAA Tournament teams, including two wins over a Northwestern team that also advanced to the second round.

The Nittany Lions will face a Texas team that flirted with a No. 1 seed in the tournament with a 26-8 season capped by a 76-56 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks in the Big 12 championship game.

Penn State and Texas lit their opponents up from 3-point range in their first-round victories. Funk drained eight 3-pointers against Texas A&M, and Sir’Jabari Rice connecting on seven for the Longhorns against Colgate. We could be in for a fun battle with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line between Penn State and Texas.

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Here’s how to watch the second-round action on Saturday.

Twitter reacts to Penn State’s massive win against Texas A&M

Best Twitter reactions to Penn State’s lopsided NCAA Tournament win over the Aggies

Penn State came out firing on the Texas A&M Aggies and in the process locked down a win that had Twitter buzzing.

Between the biggest win in Penn State’s NCAA tournament history and [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag] breaking Twitter, it was a great night for Penn State. They are poised to play the two-seed Texas Longhorns but for now, they are celebrating this victory.

Coach Micah Shrewsberry coached a near-perfect game and arguably made himself a ton of money in the process.

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Twitter noticed that and much more during the game though.

Penn State dominates Texas A&M, advances in NCAA Tournament for first time since 2001

Andrew Funk’s big game fuels Penn State past Texas A&M in NCAA Basketball Tournament

Going into the NCAA Tournament, the goal is to be playing the best basketball of the season by the time the games start.

Penn State has been doing that in March.

After a great run before the Big Ten Tournament to get themselves into the March Madness conversation, they cemented themselves in the field by making the championship game. Even though they lost on the last possession, it was clear this Penn State team was peaking at the right time.

But, the NCAA Tournament was going to be a different challenge. Facing a Texas A&M team from a different conference whose style of play was different than what they’ve seen before was supposed to be a test of how good this team actually was.

The Nittany Lions answered all questions tonight winning 76-59.

This was a historic win for Penn State. It was the first NCAA Tournament win since 2001. It was the largest margin of victory for the program in NCAA Tournament history. [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag]’s 27 points were the most by a Penn State player in NCAA Tournament history.

It was also a weird game in many ways for Nittany Lions fans. This felt like the first time in about a month that the game didn’t come down to the wire.

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That’s because Penn State rarely trailed in this game. After trailing 2-4 in the first couple minutes of the game, Funk hit a three to put them back on top. Funk hitting threes was the theme of the game.

About five minutes into the first half, Texas A&M was up four points. That was their largest lead of the game. Once again, Funk hit a three to cut the lead to one point. After seesawing back and forth for a bit, [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] hit a jumper that put Penn State up 13-12 at the 11-and-a-half-minute mark.

They never trailed in the game again.

It was an utterly dominant performance by Penn State. They shot 48.2% from the field and a scorching 59.1% from behind the three-point line. They also held A&M to 33.9% shooting and 29.4% from three. This was easily the best game this team had played all season.

Funk was the star of the game tonight. He hit eight threes on 10 attempts to finish with the NCAA Tournament record of 27 points. Pickett was his usual dominant self, finishing with 19 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds. [autotag]Seth Lundy[/autotag] joined them in double figures with 10 points.

But it was truly a team effort. [autotag]Camren Wynter[/autotag] didn’t light up the box score, but he played a major part in frustrating Texas A&M’s best player Wade Taylor IV. Freshmen [autotag]Kebba Njie[/autotag] and [autotag]Evan Mahaffey[/autotag] had important stretches stifling the opposing bigs.

Penn State fans should be celebrating this historic victory because it was a long time coming.

They’ll be facing the second-seeded Texas Longhorns in Des Moines, Iowa on Saturday for the opportunity to play in the Sweet 16.

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Report Card: Penn State puts on dominant showing against Texas A&M

Penn State’s postgame report card after an NCAA Tournament thrashing of Texas A&M is terrific

Penn State men’s basketball entered the NCAA tournament as hot as they could be after a strong Big Ten tournament. Texas A&M, unfortunately for them, drew the short end of the draw and faced the Nittany Lions in the first round.

Texas A&M was coming off a strong season in the SEC with their coach Buzz Williams earning coach of the year honors. They were 25-9 during the season but Penn State and their double-digit loss record did not care. In fact, they couldn’t have cared less because they came out motivated and looking the best they did the entire season.

It was a complete effort from Micah Shrewsberry’s team, and there were plenty fo positive remarks to share in the postgame report card.

Offense

Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports

Grade: A+++

This arguably was the best offensive performance from any team in the tournament on day one. Penn State’s previous largest margin of victory was 12 points in the 1954 tournament, but after Thursday night it will be 17, and honestly could have been 20 if not for a last-second three.

The offense was led by the three-point shooting, as it was all year, as they were 13 for 22 from beyond the arc. If they can keep that shooting up then they are a serious problem for anyone they face in this tournament.

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NEXT: Defense

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Best photos from Penn State’s NCAA Tournament win over Texas A&M

Check out the best photos from Penn State’s blowout win over Texas A&M in the NCAA Basketball Tournament’s first round.

For the first time since 2001, Penn State’s men’s basketball team won a game in the NCAA Tournament, and it left no doubt who the better team was in its return to the Big Dance.

Penn State was dialed in from 3-point range in a rout of Texas A&M in the first-round matchup in the Midwest Region. Penn State was led by a monster performance by Andrew Funk in the win and advances to the second round to face Big 12 champion Texas on Saturday.

Here are some of the best photos from Penn State’s big night to cap the first full day of the NCAA Tournament from Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday night.

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NCAA Tourney First Round Matchup: Penn State vs. Texas A&M

How do Penn State and Texas A&M compare, player vs. player? Let’s go to the tale of the tape to find out!

March Madness is officially here!

For the first time since 2011, Penn State is a part of the Big Dance.

After their impressive run in the Big Ten Tournament, the Nittany Lions are the 10 seed in the Midwest Region. They drew the 7th-seeded Texas A&M Aggies in their first-round matchup.

Since Texas A&M is an SEC team, these two teams rarely have played each other. They’ve actually only competed three times on the hard court, with A&M winning all three prior matchups. The most recent game was played in Brooklyn, NY in 2017.

Similarly to Penn State, the Aggies were in their conference tournament championship game where they lost to Alabama 63-82.

Many bracket analysts and pundits feel that Texas A&M is coming into this tournament under seeded after finishing both the SEC regular season and postseason in second place. On the surface, that presents a challenge for Penn State, who is playing a team in the first round they probably shouldn’t be facing.

Let’s take a look at both teams and see they compare.

Is Penn State the best No. 10 seed in the NCAA Basketball Tournament?

Penn State is the best No. 10 seed in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament

Penn State will return to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament for the first time since 2011 when the Nittany Lions face Texas A&M on Thursday night in a first-round matchup between the runners-up in the Big Ten and SEC tournament championship games. Texas A&M comes into the matchup as the higher seed and the favorite, but could Penn State be the best 10-seed in this year’s tournament?

CBS Sports sure thinks so.

CBS Sports went through each seed line in this year’s tournament to determine which team is the best at each seed. When it came to comparing Penn State to the other 10-seeds in the field this season, the Nittany Lions came out on top.

“The hot streak was powered by being one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country (38.5% ranks No. 9 nationally) and having a senior point guard in [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] that can orchestrate the offense to make sure they get a good look from behind the arc,” CBS Sports in its explanation for naming Penn State the best 10-seed in the tournament. “Six of those eight wins in this streak have come against tournament teams, making Penn State a potential problem in the bottom of the Midwest Region.”

Penn State is the No. 10 seed in the Midwest region and come into the tournament on a bit of a hot streak. Before coming back to take Purdue down to the wire in the Big Ten championship game, the Nittany Lions closed out the regular season with wins over Northwestern and Maryland and followed that with Big Ten tournament victories over Illinois, Northwestern (again), and Indiana for a string of five victories over teams in the NCAA Tournament.

The other No. 10 seeds in the tournament include Boise State (West), USC (East), and Utah State (South).

Follow Kevin McGuire on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

Follow Nittany Lions Wire on Twitter and like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion. Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

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Jalen Pickett named USBWA All-American

Jalen Pickett is the first player to ever be named an All-American by the USBWA.

A day before Penn State is set to play in its first NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament game since 2011, [autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] has added another all-American honor to his name. On Wednesday, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association revealed its all-American teams for the 2022-23 season, and Pickett was included on the third team.

In being named to the USBWA All-American list, Pickett becomes the first player in Penn State program history to receive all-American honors from the basketball writers association. On top of making al-American history for the Nittany Lions, Pickett was named the District II Player of the Year.

Pickett was behind first-team guard Marcus Sasser of Houston and second-team guards Jaime Jaquez Jr. of UCLA and Tyler Kolek of Marquette on the USBWA all-American voting. He was one of two guards on the third team, with Kansas State’s Markquis Nowell also appearing on the third team roster.

A pair of Big Ten players, Purdue’s Zach Edey and Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis, landed on the first team from the USBWA. Pickett was joined on the USBWA third team by Iowa forward Kris Murray as the only other Big Ten players to be honored by the USBWA along. The Big Ten had the most USBWA all-Americans among all conferences with four.

Pickett was previously named a second-team All-American by Sporting News.

Pickett will lead Penn State into its first NCAA Tournament since 2011 when the Nittany Lions face Texas A&M in the first round on Thursday night. Penn State has not won a game in the NCAA Tournament since 2001.

Follow Kevin McGuire on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

Follow Nittany Lions Wire on Twitter and like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion. Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

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