Penn can’t match Pitt on the boards in 82-58 defeat

PITTSBURGH - Pitt used its superior size to dominate on the boards as the Panthers routed visiting Penn, 82-58, Saturday night.

"(Pitt) being relentless on offensive boards was really the tale of the story," Penn coach Jerome Allen said.

The No. 5 Panthers (7-0) out-rebounded Penn 35-20.

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon split time among his entire squad, as 11 of his 13 players saw double-digit minutes. And for the second time this season, the Panthers bench outscored its starters 46-36.

The Panthers got off to a 9-0 start to open the game before Conor Turley scored a layup off the bench for Penn four minutes into the game. Turley entered the game after starter Andreas Schreiber committed two early fouls.

Once the Quakers got on the board, they generated a run of their own and narrowed Pitt's lead to just three, at 18-15. Freshman Fran Dougherty and senior Jack Eggleston spurred the run with six combined rebounds.

While Penn had some success rebounding, it didn't last long. The Panthers answered with a 16-0 run to end the first half leading, 36-18.

"I thought we finished out that first half very well, we played very unselfish," Dixon said. "That was a good stretch for us."

At the half, only three Penn players - Eggleston, Dougherty and Zack Rosen - had grabbed boards, while eight Pitt players combined for 20.

However, the Quakers held Big East Player of the Week Ashton Gibbs to just three points in the half but he finished with a team-high 12.

The Quakers struggled for rebounds throughout the game, though Allen was quick to not blame the apparent height difference between the two squads.

Pitt's starting frontcourt stood at 6-foot-11 (center Gary McGhee), 6-9, and 6-6 while Penn's frontcourt was 6-9, 6-8 and 6-6.

"At the end of the day . . . it's more about desire to flat out, go and get the ball," he said. "Whether they're 6-(foot)-9, 6-10, 6-7 across the board, we still have to go and get the rebound."

Penn came out strong in the second half, as Miles Cartwright and Dougherty replaced Tyler Bernardini, who was 0-of-7 shooting with zero rebounds and zero assists, and the foul-troubled Schreiber. While Cartwright finished with 22 points, he and the Quakers could only cut Pitt's lead to 14 at 42-28.

The Panthers coupled dominating rebounds with 58.6 percent field goal shooting to seal the win, their 52nd straight at home against non-conference opponents.

"We have to beat people on the boards by big margins, because that's something that we emphasize and really do well," Dixon said.

Senior Gilbert Brown lead the Panthers with seven rebounds, while senior Brad Wanamaker, a Philadelphia native and graduate of Roman Catholic High School, added six.

Eggleston led the Quakers with seven rebounds, and tallied 16 points on the night.