Five takeaways from Penn State men’s basketball’s 93-68 season-opening win over Winthrop
Penn State men’s basketball opened its season with a 93-68 victory over Winthrop Monday night to open its second season under head coach Micah Shrewsberry.
The Nittany Lions played an up-tempo pace and shot the ball well from beyond the arc, something that could be a theme this season.
Here are five takeaways from the team’s season opener.
Jalen Pickett has taken another step
It was clear coming into the season who Penn State’s best player was going to be, but it wasn’t clear just how good he could be. Pickett was an all-conference selection heading into the year but would still need to take a step forward for the Nittany Lions to do some extra damage in the Big Ten. It’s only one game, but it seems he’s done just that.
Pickett was efficient as a scorer, finding his spots in the post and in the mid-range while also not overdoing it from those areas and shooting from more productive spots like at the rim and from beyond the arc. He finished the game going 3-of-6 from beyond the arc and had 23 points on 13 shot attempts. He won’t be that efficient every game, but it seems he’s made a concerted effort to improve his scoring efficiency.
Spacing and shooting will be key
Part of the reason Pickett is able to be more efficient is because he has more space to work. The senior guard moves methodically when he attacks off the dribble and needs time and space to work. Last season, Penn State almost always had a non-shooter on the court who would clog up space near the rim. That isn’t the case with this roster and it showed against Winthrop.
Pickett was able to penetrate and kick passes out to shooters who made plenty of their open looks. It seems clear early that this is a time that is going to shoot it well this year and the addition of Andrew Funk from Bucknell could mean they have a true knockdown shooter from deep.
“We want to spread the court,” Shrewsberry said. “We wanna get threes and now people are running at us and now we can attack the rim.”
Lack of size might not be an issue
There is no guarantee that this holds true later in the year or even in non-conference play, but it seems Penn State’s lack of size is not a problem. In fact, it may be an advantage against certain teams. Most Big Ten teams play at least one true big man that fits the archetype of an old school center. Those players are long and strong and protect the rim, but they’re lumbering and don’t move well.
Penn State doesn’t have anyone like that in its rotation and that’s going to force teams to play small or have their bigs defend on the perimeter. Teams that have traditional centers against Penn State may end up with a rebounding advantage, but their ability to defend may be compromised by the Nittany Lions’ shooting and quickness.
Freshmen contributions could change things
Right now there is only one freshman that seems to have cemented themselves as part of the rotation for the Nittany Lions. Kebba Njie is the backup center and has a chance to supplant Caleb Dorsey as the starter once he settles into the college game’s increased pace, but outside of him there are no guarantees. Still, there are options for potential contributors that will likely make an impact by season’s end.
Evan Mahaffey was a part of the rotation in the first half, while Kanye Clary saw minutes before the game was fully out of hand and both could make an impact. Mahaffey is a wing defender who has the offensive versatility Shrewsberry searches for, while Clary has the ability to lead the second unit when Pickett goes to the bench. Their improvement through non-conference play will be worth monitoring.
Funk shows what he can do
Funk deserves his own acknowledgment with how he played Monday night. He was the second-leading scorer on the team behind Pickett with 22 points and was hitting most of the shots he got from beyond the arc, firing up 10 and netting 6. His role with this team as an off-ball player who is capable of creating when necessary is vastly different from who he was last season at Bucknell.
He was that team’s best offensive player and had to create almost all of his shots while also doing so for his teammates. While he’s capable at that, it’s not the ideal role for him. He made note of the difference following the game.
“I’m really comfortable off the ball,” Funk said. “When you’re able to play with guys like Jalen and Cam (Wynter) and Dallion (Johnson) and Seth (Lundy), guys who can really make plays, it just makes my life a lot easier. It was just a different team the way we were made up last year … I feel really comfortable.”
That change should allow him to blossom with the Nittany Lions and become the idealized version of himself on the court.
This story was originally published November 7, 2022 at 9:59 PM.
