NEW YORK – Many players have jitters at first when they play on a big stage for the first time, and Madison Square Garden is certainly a big stage. But Andrew Jones had a different idea: embrace it.
“Playing at Madison Square Garden, the Mecca of basketball, I guess I just saw it as an opportunity to come out and establish myself,” said Penn State’s sophomore big man. “I know the lights and cameras are on (Luke) Harangody, and I’m guarding him, so I might as well take advantage of that.”
It’s easy to notice Jones’ numbers on Tuesday night, as he posted career highs of 16 points and 15 rebounds in leading Penn State to a 67-59 win over Notre Dame. But the bigger contribution was what he alluded to, and that’s the defense he played on the Fighting Irish star forward. The former Big East Player of the Year may have posted a double-double (17 points, 10 rebounds), but the numbers are deceiving. Harangody was just 5-16 from the field, and Jones did a lot of it himself because his teammates couldn’t help much off some of the other Irish players since they could burn the Nittany Lions instead. Jones’ biggest defensive success came in Harangody making just six free throw attempts, all in the second half.
“You have to hand it to him on the boards,” said Harangody. “He was big on the defensive end for them.”
Jones’ big game on Tuesday was the latest in a nice stretch for a young man who hasn’t exactly been playing basketball his whole life. The Philadelphia native didn’t play until he was a sophomore in high school, when he started playing in recreational leagues and later with a travel team. His growth is still coming as he’s certainly not physically mature yet, and it seems to be accelerating now.
In the NIT, Jones is averaging 11 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Both numbers are up significantly from his season averages of 5.9 and 5.6, respectively. In their second round win over Rhode Island, he posted his second career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and it marked the second straight game in which he scored in double figures. Tuesday night makes in three times in four games, and this comes after scoring six points and grabbing 11 rebounds in two Big Ten Tournament games.
His performance in the Big Ten Tournament makes the NIT success look like it has come out of nowhere. That’s not entirely the case, but no one is discounting what he’s done in the last four games for this team.
“Andrew Jones has done a good job and I have not done a good job of getting him the ball enough, that’s my fault,” said head coach Ed DeChellis. “He’s a tremendous rebounder and that’s what I’ve asked him to do, rebound, defend and hopefully we can feed off the other guys and get some shots.”
Jones started 21 games last year, so he played right away. This year, he was in the starting lineup all along, and has had some games that suggested he was on the verge of breaking out. But he’s not asked to play a leading role because he has good talent around him. The guards make this team go, led by first team All-Big Ten selection Talor Battle and Stanley Pringle. Of late, the team has really taken a cue from senior forward Jamelle Cornley, who has played of late with a partially dislocated left shoulder that has been heavily wrapped. Cornley has been a warrior of late and willed the team to its win at Florida, and he also made a few key baskets in the second half on Tuesday night.
Cornley and Battle have seen the work Jones has put in all along. They have seen Jones put in time before and after practice and his continued work, and Cornley noted seeing an increase in confidence that’s been coming along. Tuesday night was a case where people besides the team could see the fruits of that labor.
“He played like an animal tonight, and I think he’s a very big reason why we won the game,” said Cornley, who had 15 points and eight rebounds in Tuesday’s win. “It’s a testament to what he’s tried to do the entire year by trying to get better, and we’ve allowed him to be freer this time of the year and he’s played well.”
“He just works so hard, and it’s paying off,” said Battle, who led the Nittany Lions with 17 points and five assists. “16 and 15 tonight, those are some big numbers. Each and every day he works hard, and it’s really paying off in the postseason.”
Jones is continuing to grow and clearly has his best basketball ahead of him. The Nittany Lions and their fans – a great many of whom made the trip to New York as the game had a feel of being a home game in Happy Valley – sure hope that some of that comes on Thursday night. He’ll be on a big stage once again, ready to embrace it all the same.
