By PAUL GOTHAM
Joining NBA veteran Lionel Simmons, Jalen Pickett (Aquinas Institute) became the first freshman since 1987 to garner First Team All-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). Pickett was named a unanimous MAAC All-Rookie selection and also earned a league record 11th Rookie of the Week award as announced on Monday.
Picked to finish last in the MAAC, Pickett has led the Siena Saints to an 11-7 mark in the league (tied for fourth place) and 16-15 overall. The 6-foot-4 guard ranks ninth overall in the nation and third among freshmen handing out 6.7 assists per game. His 2.1 steals top all freshmen in the country. He leads the MAAC in assists and assist-to-turnover rate (2.65).
“We rely on him to do a lot of things,” first-year Siena Siants head coach Jamion Christian said during a league conference call on Monday. “I really don’t look at guys as freshmen, sophomores or seniors. At the end of the day, all the experience we have in this life you kinda play it on the floor. He’s got a lot of basketball experience that he brought to us this year.”
Pickett posted his fifth double-double of the season (11 points and 10 rebounds) in Friday’s loss at Canisius. He followed that with a game-high 27 points and eight assists along with six rebounds in a win over Niagara.
“He’s just got elite basketball IQ,” Christian added while emphasizing the connectivity Pickett has with his teammates on the floor. “He can obviously score in the midrange. He can make outside shots. There a lot of guys in this league that can do that. He can also go and make others better. He’s done a really great job of that all season long.”
Pickett’s 11th Rookie of the Week honor ties him with Matt Witt of Eastern Kentucky at second for the most weekly rookie awards in NCAA history. Ohio State’s Jared Sullinger holds the mark with 12 Big Ten Rookie of the Week awards.
“As he’s continued to improve during the course of the season and learned how to play the position of point guard, our team became really, really good,” Christian added. “A large part of that has to do with his ability to continue to grow and learn in big moments.”
Earlier this year, Pickett became one of four MAAC student-athletes to earn Rookie and Player of the Week simultaneously. He joined former National Player of the Year and NBA veteran Lionel Simmons and current East High head coach Darrell Barley to earn that 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 current NBA player 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 opens the MAAC Championship against Rider. A 9:30 tip off is scheduled Saturday at the Times-Union Center in Albany.
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