Geary Claxton had been waiting for this moment for over a month.

As he took to the court this past Saturday against Seton Hall, the junior swingman was finally able to forget about the pinkie he broke during the exhibition season and just play.

After toiling for two weeks with a cast on his right hand, the All-Big Ten candidate was finally cleared to play without the wrap. And when he took the court, he seemed to unleash 38 days worth of frustration into 32 sensational minutes of play.

Claxton put on a clinic as he blitzed the Pirates to the tune of a career-high 29 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. The numbers speak for themselves, but Claxton played with a renewed intensity that Penn State needed, especially with the emotional and vocal Jamelle Cornley banged up with a sprained ankle.

While playing with the cast, Claxton saw his role on the team change. At the snap of a pinkie, he went from being the star and leading scorer to role-playing rebounder and defensive stopper.

The change in duties was a new thing for the team MVP, which forced him to adjust his style of play

Claxton admitted that having to play with the wrap caused him to hesitate and maybe not drive when he normally would.

"Sometimes I would see some advantages, but I knew that I wouldn't be able to get [around the defender] just because of my hand," Claxton said. "It slows me down because I have to focus a lot more on dribbling with this hand."

But, when the padding was removed last week, the game once again slowed down and strong penetrator was back to his old self, almost.

"It was a lot easier to do what I wanted to do," Claxton said. "I just tried to do the things I can do: rebounding, scoring around the basket and doing some defensive plays. So I just tried to play the best I could."

The return to health was made even sweeter for the West Haven, Conn. native by the 200 friends and family members who made the trek to East Rutherford, N.J.

Claxton enjoyed the support, but wished he could have given them a little more to cheer about.

"It felt real good, it felt like a little homecoming," Claxton said. "It was just so good to have the support, but I'm a little bit upset that we didn't win."

Cornley and the rest of the team knew about the Claxton section, and wanted to give them an opportunity to see what they had traveled over an hour and a half to see.

"When you've got a player that, who has 200 family and friends there, you know that more than likely he's going to have a big night," Cornley said. "I knew that he felt kind of free with that thing off of his hand and it looked as if he was in a groove."

But anytime a player of Claxton's caliber begins to light up the scoreboard, the game plan is quickly revised. Head coach Ed DeChellis said that because Claxton had his game going, the offense focused on him. The Lions repeatedly called Claxton's number and he kept responding with quick, active drives to the basket and key rebounds.

Cornley noted that the team was looking for Claxton more, but it didn't take a genius to figure out who was going to get the ball.

"After 17 points in the first half," Cornley said. "It's like, 'OK, yea, the man needs to get the ball.' "

It's no coincidence that Claxton's best performance, thus far, came after the cast was removed. DeChellis just hopes that a healthy Claxton can continue to improve, which will only make the entire team more consistent and better.

"It was fun to watch him, it was great to see," DeChellis said. "If he can give us that kind of game, I think it makes our other guys rise up."