Panthers Dust Off Gold Uniforms, Then Produce The Same Lopsided ...

It has become common for professional and college sports teams to don third jerseys on special occasions. It's a marketing and motivational ploy.
Considering Pitt's record against crosstown rival Duquesne in recent years, the Panthers probably didn't need to wear their gold uniforms for the first time in eight years last night in the annual City Game.
This series has been so lopsided that it could be argued that Pitt's players could dress in drag and still put a beating on their old rival.
So it was no surprise that the Panthers sent the Dukes back to the Bluff with a loss and badly bruised egos for the eighth consecutive year. Last night's 78-51 victory at the Petersen Events Center was three points shy of being the most lopsided win in the history of the series for Pitt and was the 27th in the past 30 games in this once competitive series.
Senior forward Sam Young led the Panthers with 23 points, his fourth 20-point game of the season. Sophomore center DeJuan Blair recorded his fifth double-double with 14 points and 17 rebounds. And junior guard Jermaine Dixon added 12 points.
Duquesne, playing its second game against a Top 10 team in five days, gave Pitt a game for a half. The Panthers led, 36-28, at halftime and pulled away in the second half with their patented lock-down defense.
No. 3 Pitt (8-0) held the Dukes (4-2) to 36 percent shooting for the game, 31 percent shooting after halftime. The Panthers forced the Dukes into 25 turnovers, scoring 27 points from those miscues. And the Panthers manhandled the Dukes on the boards, winning the rebounding battle, 44-31.
'In the second half, we handed it to them on a silver platter,' Duquesne coach Ron Everhart said.
Blair had his double-double by halftime -- the second time he has accomplished that feat this season -- and it was clear the Dukes had no answer for his brute strength inside.
'He's such a good player,' Everhart said. 'Obviously, we didn't do as good a job as we hoped in that area.'
Blair had 10 offensive rebounds in the game, giving him 42 offensive rebounds in seven games. Only one other player on Pitt's roster (Young) has more than 42 total rebounds for the season.
Blair's knack for grabbing missed shots has become a regular part of Pitt's offense, and it has been important the past few games when the Panthers have exhibited some erratic shooting early in games.
The Panthers opened last night's game 1 for 9 and 4 for 16 from the field, but still never trailed by more than four points at any time. That's because Blair, Young and Tyrell Biggs were pounding the glass and creating second opportunities.
'Our offense has been pretty good,' Dixon said. 'I don't think we've taken lot of bad shots. Offensive rebounding, as I've said all along, is a byproduct of good offense. By sharing the ball and taking open shots, by moving the defense, scrambling the defense, they have to recover late.
'Our guys know they're shooting it. When they know it's going up, they're going to the glass. The bottom line is [Blair] goes and gets them. He has great hands. He's got a knack. It's something we really emphasize in practice and alice in wonderland dress something we continue to work on.'
There were seven lead changes in the first 12 minutes as the two teams felt each other out. The Dukes led, 18-15, with 8:31 remaining after Eric Evans made his second 3-pointer in 38 seconds. The Panthers dominated the final eight minutes of the half to take a 36-28 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Pitt came out with more fire and clinic dress seized control of the contest. The Panthers scored nine of the first 11 points and low cut dress led, 45-30, after Young scored. A few minutes later, Brad Wanamaker's 3-pointer gave the Panthers a 20-point leadthe rout was on.
'We started out a little slow,' Blair said. 'We wanted to turn it up in the second half. We did a good job of responding.'
Pitt has won its first eight games by double digits, but in three of those the Panthers have led by six points or fewer at halftime. The slow starts are something the Panthers hope to rectify in future games.
'I don't know why we're coming out slow,' Jermaine Dixon said. 'The first couple of games we came out on fire. We talked about that. Maybe we got a little overconfident. We just need to start picking it up from the start.'



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