Lamar Patterson scored the first five points of the second half as the Pitt Panthers easily dispatched the visiting Mountaineers 71-58 last night. The reserve finished with a career high 11 points for fourth ranked Pittsburgh. Patterson replaced the injured Talib Zanna and sparked the Panthers’ second half home comeback against Big East rival, West Virginia. Nasir Robinson led Pitt with 15 points, while Casey Mitchell knocked down 22 for the Mountaineers. Pittsburgh has a two game edge in the conference. West Virginia sits at a three-way tie for ninth place. The Panthers beat WVU for the tenth time in their last 11 tries.
Gilbert Brown poured in 11 points during the first half but the Panthers quickly found themselves in a 7-0 hole. The Panthers stormed back to even the score against the hard charging team from the Mountain State. Pitt fell behind to trail 31-30 at the break but the Mountaineers couldn’t maintain their advantage after halftime. West Virginia’s second half collapse began early. The Mountaineers missed five of their first seven attempts and were crippled by cold shooting. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, shot 65% in the final 20 minutes and finished with 57.4% for the game.
Patterson and the Panthers built a 47-36 lead with just under 12 minutes left. Brad Wanamaker put up 11 points, eight assists and added seven rebounds in the win. Pittsburgh’s transition defense hobbled Bob Huggins’ Mountaineers and WVU never threatened again. Gary McGhee was a force on defense with two blocks as Jamie Dixon won for the 213th time as Pitt’s head coach. Joe Mazzulla scored nine and pulled down six rebounds for the Mountaineers, who were outscored 41-27 in the second half. The Panthers also bested the Mountaineers in rebounding by three. The win pushes Pitt’s record to 25-3 overall, including a staggering 9-2 road record. There are three conference games remaining before the Big East tournament. Pitt looks like a top seeded team who can pummel just about any opponent.
Parting Points: Song of the day- “I’ve Got My Mind Set on You” by George Harrison
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