By PAUL GOTHAM
For the third time this season, Jalen Pickett (Aquinas) received Rookie of the Week honors from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) as announced earlier this week.
Pickett registered his third double-double of the season (16 points/11 assists) as the Siena men’s basketball team defeated Cal Poly, 75-54 in the Saints final non-conference game of the regular season.
Pickett connected on 6-of-12 shots from the floor including 4-of-7 from behind the 3-point arc. The 6-foot-4 guard collected five rebounds and a pair of steals while committing just one turnover. Read the MAAC release here.
Pickett ranks seventh nationally with 7.0 assists. He leads the MAAC with an assist-to-turnover rate of 3.03:1. Per KenPom, he ranks fourth nationally with an assist rate of 43.5.
Earlier this season, Pickett became just the fourth student-athlete in MAAC history to earn Rookie and Player of the Week simultaneously. He joined former Canisius Golden Griffin and current East High coach Darrell Barley to receive this distinction.
Pickett averaged 19.6 points and grabbed nine rebounds per game during his senior season at Aquinas. He earned All-Tournament team honors as a junior when AQ won the Section V title under then head coach Mike Grosodonia. He was named MVP when Aquinas won the program’s first state title in a run which included a win over reigning champ Shenendehowa and recent NBA draft pick Kevin Huerter. He also earned another All-Tournament nod in the Federation Tournament of Champions when the Li’l Irish fell in the final to Jefferson, 72-65.
Pickett played one season at SPIRE Institute in Ohio after Aquinas.
Siena’s Saturday, January 5th meeting with Canisius will be carried on ESPN3. Their Friday, January 11th game at Marist will be televised on ESPNU.
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