I was already intrigued by Penn State’s upside before the Big Ten Tournament, when this team won three games and nearly upset top-seeded Purdue.

I’m even more bullish about this group after it drew a solid but vulnerable Texas A&M team in Thursday’s first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Nittany Lions are the most experienced college basketball team in the country with the nation’s seventh-lowest turnover rate (13.7 percent) and a relentless approach from beyond the arc.

They’re the only team with top-10 ranks in 3-point percentage (38.5 percent) and 3-point rate (47.4 percent), hitting at least seven triples in all but two games this season.

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Still, this team was staring at a long-shot tournament bid until do-it-all guard Jalen Pickett — who ranks third nationally in assist rate (40.4 percent) — started getting to the line and helped his teammates do the same.

Before Feb. 14, the Nittany Lions ranked dead last in the country in free-throw rate (17.7 percent); they’ve nearly doubled that over the last month (31.4 percent) to spark an 8-2 run to close the year.

All of that is incredibly concerning for Texas A&M, which ranks below average in opponent free-throw rate (35.1 percent) and allows the second-highest 3-point rate (45.9 percent) of any team in this tournament.

Without the size to bully Penn State down low, this feels like a nightmare matchup for the Aggies and a perfect showcase for Pickett to make his name in March.

Penn State +3.5 (-110, FanDuel)