University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Pitt
DePaul
Panthers Roll In Regular Season Finale
3/9/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 9, 2008
Box Score | Quotes | Notes
PITTSBURGH (AP) - DeJuan Blair had 22 points and 14 rebounds and Sam Young 19 points as Pittsburgh closed out its regular season with a 98-79 victory over DePaul on Sunday.
Pitt (22-9, 10-8 Big East), which began the game on a 13-3 run and never trailed, clinched the No. 7 seed in the Big East tournament that begins Wednesday in New York.
Six players scored at least 11 points for the Panthers, including senior Keith Benjamin, who scored 12 points, and Ronald Ramon, who scored 11, on Senior Day.
Point guard Levance Fields narrowly missed out on the fourth triple double in Pitt history and first in 10 years. He had 11 points, nine assists and nine rebounds.
Dar Tucker had 23 points and Draelon Burns had 18 for DePaul (11-19, 6-12), which was eliminated from postseason play in defeat. A win would have given the Blue Demons the 12th and final spot in the conference tournament.
After falling behind by as many as 12 points early in the game, the Blue Demons used an 11-2 run to tie the game at 27 midway through the first half. But Pitt answered with an 8-0 run and never led by less than four points after that.
Pitt shot 56.1 percent from the field and held a 46-27 edge in rebounding.
The Panthers will play either Cincinnati or Seton Hall on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Madison Square Garden, pending the outcome of games those two teams play later Sunday. With DePaul's loss, Providence earned a berth in the Big East tournament.
This is the seventh consecutive season the Panthers have had at least 10 wins in conference play. Pitt also appears almost certainly heading to the NCAA tournament for the seventh straight season.
After starting 4-2 in the Big East, the Blue Demons finished its season losing 10 of 12.
