Men's Basketball Defeats Gannon 69-44 in Exhibition Game
11/14/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Men's Basketball Defeats Gannon 69-44 in Exhibition Game
11/14/2004
PITTSBURGH ? No. 17 Pittsburgh limited Gannon to 22.2 percent field goal shooting, Chevon Troutman registered a double-double and Carl Krauser added 10 points as the Panthers concluded their exhibition schedule with a 69-44 victory over Gannon Sunday at the Petersen Events Center.
Pittsburgh?s defense flexed its muscle all night as it held Gannon to 22.2 percent field goal shooting, 17.6 percent 3-point shooting and also blocked six Golden Knights shots and forced 16 turnovers.
The Panthers grabbed a 16-5 lead as they nailed six of their first twelve shots by six different Panther players, including 3-pointers by Yuri Demetris and Ronald Ramon. Gannon cut the lead to six after a fastbreak lay-up by Shelby Chaney, but the Golden Knights couldn?t get any closer. Pittsburgh extended its lead to 10 on Krauser?s fastbreak layup. Krauser proceeded to score four of the Panthers? next six points, extending Pittsburgh?s lead to 30-16.
Pittsburgh?s lead was cut to 10 after a steal and two free throws by Matt Jones, but the Panthers roared back to end the half on a 6-1 run thanks in part to two blocks and a layup in the final two minutes by Mark McCarroll. McCarroll ended the game with a total of three blocked shots. Pittsburgh held a 36-21 lead at the half. Eight Panthers recorded a point in the first half with Troutman leading the way with eight.
The second half began much like the first with the Panthers dominating on defense. Troutman blocked another Golden Knight shot, then followed that up with a three-pointer to open up a 45-25 lead. A minute later, Levon Kendall hit another three to extend the lead to 22.
Back to back three-pointers by Ronald Ramon and Yuri Demetris extended Pittsburgh?s lead to 54-31 mid-way through the half. The Panthers hit seven three-pointers on the day and finished 5-10 from beyond the arc in the second half.
Antonio Graves got into the flow late in the game and ended up with 10 points en route to the Panthers 69-44 victory. Center Aaron Gray earned the start on the evening. Chris Taft did not play because of an injury and Keith Benjamin sat out because of sickness. Both Benjamin and Taft should be ready to go for Pittsburgh?s season opener next Saturday against Howard.
Pittsburgh begins its regular season on Saturday, Nov. 20 against Howard at the Petersen Events Center. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
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