Jerry Dunn and the Penn State men's basketball team have shown they can beat any team on any given day (i.e. Kentucky, Illinois).

They have also shown they can lose to almost any team on any given day (i.e. last week's loss at Northwestern).

Not that I'm telling you anything you don't already know.

The point is, to beat the nation's elite teams, you need to have several things going for you. First, you need to play with a high energy level, as the Nittany Lions did in Lexington and at home against the Illini. Second, you need big performances and leadership from your seniors, which the Lions got from Joe Crispin (31 points at Kentucky) and Titus Ivory (27 against Illinois).

Third (bear with me, I'm going somewhere with this), you need balance. All season long, Penn State has gotten consistent double-figure scoring from Crispin, Ivory and fellow senior Gyasi Cline-Heard. In the team's two biggest wins of the year to date, however, the Lions received help from a fourth source — tremendous help, in fact. The player I'm talking about is Jon Crispin.

Yes, the "other" Crispin. The sophomore shooting guard from Pitman, N.J., whose three-point shots routinely flirt with the rafters in The Bryce Jordan Center, and whose ability to string four or five threes together makes him an ever-present threat.

Flash back to Nov. 25 in Lexington. Jon comes out firing, scoring a career-high 26 points on 9-12 shooting, draining a neat 6-8 from behind the arc. As a result, the Lions knock off the Wildcats to obtain their biggest road win in recent memory.

Flash forward to Jan. 31 against Illinois. Crispin, who has scored more than 10 points only three times since the Kentucky game, starts unassumingly enough, but then nails a big triple right before halftime to pull Penn State within four.

On a night when his older brother struggles, Jon adds 11 points in the second half, then leaps onto the scorer's table as fans storm the court to celebrate Penn State's overtime upset of the No. 6 Illini.

Now, look at the Lions' past two games, a disastrous defeat at Northwestern and a home loss to Michigan State closer than the final score indicated. Crispin's combined totals: 1-8 from the floor, 0-5 from downtown, 2 points.

The numbers just don't add up, but let's try to anyway. In the Kentucky and Illinois games alone, Crispin has 44 points. In the Lions' nine losses this season, he has 42.

It just makes you wonder if the two big games were a fluke, or if Crispin only decides to show up in front of a national audience. If the latter is true, why, in front of 15,000 fans and ESPN cameras, did Crispin wait until the second half to even attempt a field goal?

Is it because he isn't confident enough with his shot? Not likely. Fearlessness runs rampant in the Crispin genetic code. And, even as a freshman, Jon never hesitated to fire away from 20 or 25 feet.

Is it because he's afraid he'll get pulled if he doesn't connect? Possibly. Dunn has yanked Crispin on more than one occasion following a long miss this season, and sophomore Brandon Watkins has come on strong in recent weeks.

I'm not the only one perplexed by Crispin's Dr. Jekyll-Mr. Hyde persona. After watching his younger brother put shot fake after shot fake on opponents before passing off on several occasions this season, Joe Crispin has been seen clearly mouthing the words, "Shoot, Jon!" to his sibling. While you'll never hear it from either Crispin or from Dunn, the brothers' on-court squabbling has irritated the coach to the point of sitting them both, as he did during the Wisconsin game.

Crispin has proven he is capable of putting up big numbers. He has also shown he can score consistently, averaging 9.3 points per game last year despite missing four games due to a foot injury.

As the Lions' hopes for a berth in the Big Dance dwindle, it is imperative that Crispin picks up his game and gets more actively involved in the offense. If not, a change needs to be made. Watkins has displayed more energy and quickness on defense and is a stronger ball-handler, and he has not been shy about taking the open jumper.

Shooting guards need to shoot, and if Crispin won't, Dunn needs to find someone who will.