It wasn’t as easy as Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon may have liked, but eventually the size and depth of the Panthers wore down visiting Penn State as Pitt improved to 8-0 on the season with a 78-69 victory in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.
But the Panthers had their hands full with the Nittany Lions all night long.
Penn State took a 30-28 lead at the half thanks to the fact that the Panthers could not buy a bucket.
“Not a good first half,” said Dixon. “I spent halftime emphasizing the amount of assists we had and three is not a good number. We weren’t patient and didn’t play well but it was a good win. Once we got going in the second half we knew we could score in the paint. We should have played better in the first half but we will get better.”
However that all changed in the second half. After shooting only 28 percent from the floor during the game’s first 20 minutes, the Panthers began exerting their will in the second half.
“Penn State is a good team,” said Pitt senior Lamar Patterson. “It took us a while to adjust. They were doubling and coming after us and we rushed things a lot. Once we settled down we got going pretty well.”
Pitt shot close to 60 percent from the floor in the second half, largely in part to the fact they owned the paint.
Talib Zanna, Patterson and the rest of the Pitt big men began getting good looks around the rim and the Panthers scored 38 points in the paint as the Pitt bigs dominated those of Penn State. Fifteen of the Panthers’ 17 field goals in the second half were layups.
“In the first half we were forcing a lot of shots,” said Zanna. ‘We had to make some adjustments and get back to the principal of attacking and getting the ball to the basket. They went small and we pretty much owned the paint.”
In addition to the high percentage opportunities the Panthers converted in the second half, Pitt made a living of getting to the free-throw line.
Free-throw shooting kept Pitt in the game early and helped them hold on late as the Panthers knocked down 28-of-35 attempts from the charity stripe.
Due to the size advantage, the Panthers converted six traditional three-point plays in the second half alone, as the formula seemed as simple as make layups and get to the free-throw line.
At the end of the day though it was Zanna and Patterson, two Pitt seniors who put the team on their back in the second half. After combining for only six first half points, the duo combined to score 26 points and grab 10 rebounds in the final 20 minutes.
“They put us on their backs and carried us,” said sophomore guard James Robinson. “We needed them tonight and they brought energy in the second half and we just rode them.”
However Penn State wouldn’t go away and kept it close late.
The Nittany Lions took a 59-58 lead on a layup by Donovon Jack with 5:15 left but Pitt responded with an 11-3 burst to take control.
“Give Pitt credit,” said Penn State head coach Pat Chambers. “They seemed to have fresh legs at the end and we seemed to wear down.”
Zanna and Patterson led the Panthers with 16 points apiece, while Cameron Wright (12) and Robinson (10) also finished in double figures. Pitt also outrebounded the Nittany Lions 38-29 on the night with Zanna grabbing 10 and Patterson nine.
Tim Frazier led Penn State with 27 points but the Nittany Lions fell to Pitt for the sixth straight time. DJ Newbill chipped in 18 but Penn State couldn’t keep up when Pitt turned up the pressure down the stretch.
“Our veterans stepped up in the second half,” added Dixon. “I wished we would have come out of the gates better but it was a good win. It was nice for some of the younger guys to experience a close game situation and we have great leadership. I like what I saw in the second half.”
The Panthers are off until Friday when they play host to Loyola Marymount.
Photo Credit: Associated Press
