by TYLER HATHAWAY
Rochester native Jalen Pickett registered a career-high 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting as the Denver Nuggets won 124-116 against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night. The Aquinas product was 5-of-7 from behind the three-point line and added four assists, a steal, and a rebound. The second-year guard is averaging 9.3 points per game, 4.7 assists per game, and 3.7 rebounds per game in the six games that Denver has been without starter Jamal Murray. Pickett has started in four of those six games.
“I’ve been playing well,” Pickett told Nuggets reporter Katy Winge after the game. “The starters and the whole coaching staff have been pushing me to be better.”
This is the first game Denver has played without former head coach Michael Malone, who was fired on Tuesday. Denver has two more regular season games left before the playoffs begin.
“Sometimes in life tough things happen and you need your brothers there to pick you up,” Pickett said. “We’re going to rally together as a team and try and make a push.”
Pickett is one of four former Section V athletes currently competing in the NBA, with the other three being Thomas Bryant (Bishop Kearney), Isaiah Stewart (McQuaid), and Jeenathan “Nate” Williams (UPrep). Bryant plays for the Indiana Pacers and is averaging 6.5 points per game and 3.9 rebounds per game. Stewart, a Detroit Piston, is averaging 6.1 points per game alongside 5.6 rebounds per game and recently scored a season-high 16 points with eight rebounds, four assists, three blocks, and two steals on Saturday. Williams is a member of the Houston Rockets and scored four points and bagged two steals on Wednesday.
Denver (48-32) hosts Memphis on Friday night.
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