Pittsburgh Panthers blow out Howard
Nov 12, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers forward Lamar Patterson (21) is fouled as he shoots by Fresno State Bulldogs forward Alex Davis (10) during the second half at the Petersen Events Center. Pittsburgh won 75-54. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The Pittsburgh Panthers men’s basketball team had no troubles defeating Howard 84-52 in the opening game of the Progressive Legends Classic.
“It was a good win for us,” Coach Jamie Dixon said. “We got off to a good start. I think we were up 19-1 so obviously our starting group looked real good, put some subs in there. We sustained at a pretty good level and did things that we wanted to do. I thought our turnovers were low, we wanted to keep them below 10, but we had some at the end that got away from us.
Lamar Patterson finished with 20 points on 7-11 shooting for the Panthers.
“Lamar Patterson can score the ball,” Cameron Wright said. “I see it every day. He deserves it, he works hard every day.”
Michael Young added 11 points including the first three of his Panthers career. James Daniel scored a game high 22 points for Howard.
Pitt led 48-24 at the half and used 11 players in the opening 20 minutes. Pitt shot a staggering 17-21 from the floor, an 81 percent success rate, while nailing 88.9 percent of its free throws. The Panthers also shot 75 percent from three point range.
A key for the Panthers was the three point shot. Eight were made in this game after a 0-11 performance against Fresno State.
“We work on that every game,” Lamar Patterson said. “Last game we couldn’t find our touch and this game we did. Some days you have it, and some days you don’t.”
The Panthers will next play Wednesday at 7:30 against Lehigh.
Of note: Wright was surprised when he found out about the Panthers shot 81 percent from the field in the first half.
“Nobody told us,” Wright said. “I feel like you guys [the media] make that stuff up sometimes.”
They said it: This whole section goes to Howard Head Coach Kevin Nickelberry.
1. “When you have nine freshman, you lose your voice.” – explaining to the media why his voice was gone during his press conference.
2. “My agent runs this tournament, so I may need to change agents.” – light hearted humor about how tough this tournament will be for his team.
3. “He thinks he can shoot from anywhere. He would shoot from half court if I let him.” – on leading scorer James Daniel