Jalen Pickett stuffs stat sheet again as Penn State basketball downs Quinnipiac,

The Penn State men’s basketball team goes as Jalen Pickett goes, and against Quinnipiac in a subdued non-conference atmosphere at the Bryce Jordan Center, the Nittany Lions followed their fifth-year senior leader to victory.

Pickett, who coach Micah Shrewsberry has called the best guard in the Big Ten, continued his stellar season for Penn State by coming one assist shy of his second career triple-double with 21 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists to help the Nittany Lions past Quinnipiac, 77-68, on a wintry Thursday in State College.

Penn State got 16 points from guard Andrew Funk, who shook off a quiet start, while guard Camren Wynter scored 12. Reserve forward Michael Henn, the seventh-year senior who transferred in during the offseason, had his best game as a Nittany Lions with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting off the bench.

Penn State shot 41.2% as a team, though the 3-point shooting was cold at 20.7% (6 of 29).

Penn State was missing starting forward Seth Lundy, who suffered an ankle injury in Sunday’s win over Canisius. Lundy is Penn State’s second leading scorer (13.7 points per game) and rebounder (6.7 rebounds per game), and he’s often tasked with guarding the opponent’s best player. At 6-foot-6, Lundy also adds size and length to a smaller roster.

Quinnipiac shot 31% from the field but made 38.7% of its 3-pointers to stay in contact with Penn State down the stretch. Guard Tyrese Williams had 16 points, while forwards Tymu Chenery and Ike Nweke both added 12 points. The Bobcats outrebounded the Nittany Lions, 48-40, and held a 17-8 advantage on the offensive glass. Those boards led to 15 second-chance points.

Thursday marked the second time Pickett was within striking distance of a triple-double, only to fall short. He had 13 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists in a home loss to Michigan State earlier this month. In last month’s 68-62 win over Butler, Pickett recorded the second triple-double in program history with 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists

Pickett’s performance helped the Nittany Lions overcome a second straight sleepy start against a non-conference foe in a less than raucous home atmosphere. On Sunday, Penn State pulled away to defeat Canisius by 30 points. Quinnipiac didn’t let things get that out of hand Thursday, but Penn State kept its lead above 10 points from the 18:20 mark through the 20-second mark in the second half.

Penn State used an early 9-0 run to take an 11-5 lead through about five minutes of play, a stretch that featured a slick pass from Funk to forward Kebba Njie and another strong finish through a foul by Njie, who started and finished the game with eight points.

Penn State still struggled from the field in the first half. The Nittany Lions made only six of their first 20 shots, and their first made 3-pointer didn’t come until the 13:40 mark after they missed their first seven attempts. Guard Dallion Johnson hit from deep off the bench. They shot just 2 of 16 on 3-pointers in…