Sitting quietly in an auxiliary gym in the Bryce Jordan Center, Geary Claxton has been asked the first question of the day that sparks his interest, the first that makes him sit up straight and rise from a slouched position in his chair.

"I'm the best on the team," Claxton answers the inquisitor. "You can ask anybody."

Anybody turned out to be sophomore guard Mike Walker, who confirmed Claxton's declaration.

"He knows what he's doing," Walker said, breaking into a smile. "But Madden is a different story."

No, it is certainly not like Claxton to boast of his on-court skills. The Connecticut native does not, however, mince words about his NBA Live 2006 prowess.

At one point last year, teammate Travis Parker even voiced suspicion that Claxton used codes to beat his opponents.

"I don't put no codes in there," was Claxton's response.

What you see is what you get with Claxton. See the athleticism and build that separates Claxton from much of the field? That's what he gives to the Penn State men's basketball team.

"You gotta use your body in this game," Claxton explains. "I just try to take advantage of everything I can."

And there were certainly no codes when playing then-No. 21 Wisconsin (17 points) and No. 12 Michigan State (19 points and 13 rebounds).

Like in NBA Live, Claxton also seems to know what he's doing when on the court. He often uses his body to take advantage of mismatches and present matchup problems for opposing defenses.

"You have to defend Geary Claxton with somebody like him, somebody 6-foot-5, 215," Purdue head coach Matt Painter said on Jan. 18, moments after Claxton lit up the Boilermakers for 20 points and 10 rebounds. "You've got to mirror him. If you go with too much size, he's going to use his quickness to get to the basket, post up and spin. If you go with someone smaller, he's just going to kill him on the boards."

Claxton's 84-inch wingspan (in comparison, post player Jamelle Cornley reports having an 80-inch wingspan) helps him rebound. The sophomore leads the team with 7.1 boards a game and is second in the Big Ten on the offensive glass with 3.28 per contest.

Though he plays the three, Claxton still jumps for the opening tip-off because of that long wingspan and Penn State's lack of height.

Claxton didn't always play the wing. His size in high school put him in the paint most of the time, which is where Penn State head coach Ed DeChellis found him.

"When I saw him play in high school, he was a real athletic guy, he really played more inside than outside," DeChellis said.

The coach thought Claxton -- who now leads the Nittany Lions in scoring with more than 15 points per game -- could help his young team, even though he didn't know quite what he was getting at the time.

Other college coaches saw something in Claxton, too. They also couldn't quite tell what they would be getting from a projected guard or wing player with little experience on the outside.

Prominent programs like Villanova and Syracuse courted Claxton, but said he would need to hone his skills at a prep school for a year after completing high school.

"I felt that I didn't need to go to prep school, and I didn't feel like doing another year of school, so I just went with my best option," Claxton said.

Claxton has no regrets on becoming a Lion instead of waiting a year to pursue an opportunity to play at a big-time basketball school.

Since coming to Penn State, Claxton has had to work on his ball handling and his outside shooting, parts of a player's game that are not developed in the post.

But that same build that landed him in the post in high school is what might help Claxton excel at this level.

That very frame is what makes DeChellis expect big things on defense.

"I always say to him, 'You should be one of the best on-ball defenders in the league. You're long, athletic, tough and strong -- no one should be able to get by you,' " DeChellis said.

DeChellis adds that Claxton has improved dramatically as a defender, and that he affects Penn State's defense because he can cover ground.

With whatever success he may meet on the court, don't expect much trash talking to come from Claxton.

A quiet guy, he likes to let his play do the talking on the court -- let that show what he can do. Off the court, Claxton's tattoos do some talking. On his left arm is a picture of Jesus Christ.

"One day last year I was praying, and just before I went to sleep I asked the Lord to let me know he was here, just give me some kind of sign." Claxton recalls. "And then He touched my arm."

On display on his right arm is a tattoo involving basketball, swords and fire.

"I'm not even sure why I got that one," Claxton says.

One thing that is certain, though, is that Claxton is solid on his decision to come here and the Lions are more than happy to have him.

"Geary just plays hard," DeChellis said. "That's something that you'd think is a given, but it's not a given all the time. He just makes the basketball plays that sometimes aren't on the stat sheet, but are still really important."

No codes required.