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Andrew Jones III (22) shoots from the charity stripe. Quakers fall to the visiting Nittany Lions, 73-85, at the Palestra. Credit: Alvin Loke

Andrew Jones has trouble picking up girls.

Or at least that’s what the Penn State Athletic Department’s marketing team thinks.

In their effort to promote Big 10 home basketball games last season, they created commercials on YouTube featuring players from the team. One video titled “Long Ball” shows Jones and teammate Andrew Ott trying to flirt with girls during a shootaround.

“Hey girl, you do karate? Cuz your body is kickin’,” Jones jokes.

The girls ignore the big guys and walk across the court to sharpshooters Danny Morrissey, Chris Babb and Cammeron Woodyard, who are draining three pointers while five girls fawn over them.

“I don’t know Ott,” Jones laments. “Chicks must dig the long ball.”

If that holds true off camera, Jones certainly continues to struggle with the ladies, as he’s attempted zero trifectas in his two seasons with the Nittany Lions.

But if chicks can dig a dunk from a hard-working, 6-foot-10 prince of the paint who excels in the biggest moments, then Jones may stand more of a chance with the ladies.

The 245-pound Philadelphia native only picked up a basketball after transferring to Abington Friends School in his sophomore year of high school, but immediately contributed with season averages of eight points and four rebounds as Friends won their league championship. Steadily improving to 14-point and eight-rebound averages by his senior year, Jones led the team to its best-ever record at 25-2 and another championship before heading to State College, Pa.

“I just got a passion for it, just for being in the gym,” Jones said of his late start and rapid development in basketball.

Still not quite ready for Big 10 basketball with only three years of organized play under his belt, Jones redshirted his freshman year. Once he hit the hardwood, though, his coaches couldn’t keep him off it.

He earned the starting center position six games into the 2007-08 season and paced the squad in offensive rebounding with 1.97 per game and in shooting percentage at 51.6 percent.

And the work ethic that yielded him a starting job also paid dividends when the Nittany Lions needed him most.

Last season, while starting a team-most 37 of 38 games, Jones was second on the team in shooting during the last five minutes of games with a 76.4 percent clip (13-of-17). In Penn State’s stunning road upset of then-No. 9 and eventual national runner-up Michigan State, Jones shot 4-for-4 in the game and drained three of his four free throws in the closing seconds to seal the win.

Then on the Nittany Lions’ run to the NIT championship, Jones had the best game of his life with career highs of 16 points and 14 rebounds in the semifinals against Notre Dame.

The red shirt junior will be counted on to improve even more this year.

Perhaps his increasing star power and skills may help him score off the court this season as well.

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