UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (AP) — Jalen Pickett scored 15 points, distributed 11 assists and collared 10 rebounds and Penn State beat Butler 68-62 on Monday night.
Pickett's effort marked only the second triple-double in Nittany Lions history. On March 16, 1998, Calvin Booth scored 19 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked 10 shots in a 77-74 NIT win over Dayton.
Andrew Funk and Camren Wynter each scored 11 for Penn State and Seth Lundy scored 10 to go along with nine rebounds.
Manny Bates scored 16 points and secured 10 rebounds, Jayden Taylor scored 14, Simas Lukosius 13 and Chuck Harris 11 for Butler. Lukosius's 3-pointer with 13:55 remaining gave Butler its last lead of the contest. Funk followed with a 3 a little more than a minute-and-a-half later and Penn State never trailed again.
With the win, Penn State improved to 3-0 on the season for the first time since 2019-20. The Nittany Lions evened the all-time series with Butler to 2-2. The Bulldogs fell to 1-1.
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