Pitt’s lone exhibition game of the 2024-25 season was competitive for a half, but the Panthers got crisp on offense and tight on defense in the second half and rolled to a 31-point blowout win over local foe Point Park at the Petersen Events Center Tuesday night.
Score: Pitt 93, Point Park 62
Top performers:
Ishmael Leggett - 8/9 FG, 24 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists
Jaland Lowe - 7/13 FG, 22 points, 2 assists, 4 steals
Cam Cohen - 7/12FG, 14 points, 11 rebounds
Point Park: Kaden Warner - 6/18 FG, 13 points, 5 assists
The storyline:
Pitt held a 50-42 lead over Point Park at halftime, but the Pioneers were more than game, hitting 48.6% on 18-of-37 shooting, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc. So while Pitt shot 47.2% in the first 20 minutes, it kept the game closer than it was expected to be.
That situation resolved itself in the second half. Pitt made 17 field goals after halftime - the same number the Panthers made in the first half - but Jeff Capel’s group pressured the ball more in the final 20 minutes, forcing Point Park to shoot 9-of-32 from the floor. The Pioneers scored just 20 points in that stretch and the Panthers pulled away.
Notables:
Pitt opened the game with the starting lineup most expected:
Jaland Lowe
Ishmael Leggett
Zack Austin
Guillermo Diaz Graham
Cam Corhen
The first sub came at the 16:14 mark of the first half when Houston transfer Damian Dunn replaced Austin.
- Pitt used eight unique lineups in the first half and only came back to the starting lineup once.
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Cummings/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Cummings/Dunn/J. Diaz Graham/G. Diaz Graham
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/J. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/Austin/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Pitt opened the second half with three guards and a five-man lineup that the Panthers didn’t use in the first half:
Jaland Lowe
Ishmael Leggett
Damian Dunn
Guillermo Diaz Graham
Cam Corhen
The staff went from that lineup back to the original starting lineup but didn’t repeat a lineup again after that.
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Cummings/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Cummings/Dunn/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Kante
Cummings/Dunn/Austin/J. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Cummings/Austin/J. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Cummings/Dunn/J. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Cummings/Dunn/J. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Dunn/Cummings/Leggett/Ndiaye/Corhen
Dunn/Cummings/Barnes/Ndiaye/Kante
Cummings/Barnes/J. Diaz Graham/Ndiaye/Kante
- When Marlon Barnes entered the game with 4:29 left to play, Pitt had officially used all 11 available scholarship players.
- The game against Point Park was only an exhibition, but it did represent the Pitt debuts of freshmen Brandin Cummings and Amdy Ndiaye and transfers Cam Corhen and Damian Dunn, as well as Papa Amadou Kante, who redshirted with an injury last season.
- Corhen transferred to Pitt from Florida State this offseason, but his first time on the court at the Petersen Events Center in a Pitt uniform didn’t get off to a great start. In 15 minutes of playing time in the first half, Corhen grabbed six rebounds but only scored two points on 1-of-5 shooting. The second half was a different story, though, as Corhen scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting and added five more rebounds. The scoring came in a variety of ways, as Corhen hit jump shots and finished at the rim.
- Corhen made big plays in the second half, but Pitt’s leaders were the two top returning scorers: Lowe and Leggett. The two guards were the leading sources of offense in the first half, putting up 31 of the Panthers’ 50 points, often shutting down Point Park’s runs and making sure Pitt stayed in control.
- The lone scholarship player who was not available on Tuesday night was freshman wing Amsal Delalic, who suffered an injury on his shooting hand during practice and is wearing a cast. According to Capel, though, things are trending up.
“The cast is smaller, so he’s able to not do anything but he can at least catch the basketball,” Capel said after the game. “Hopefully if the appointment goes well on Thursday, he’ll be out of the cast and maybe in a soft splint.”
Capel said Delalic can “hopefully” be available for Pitt’s season opener against Radford on Monday, Nov. 4.
- Final box score:
Score: Pitt 93, Point Park 62
Top performers:
Ishmael Leggett - 8/9 FG, 24 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists
Jaland Lowe - 7/13 FG, 22 points, 2 assists, 4 steals
Cam Cohen - 7/12FG, 14 points, 11 rebounds
Point Park: Kaden Warner - 6/18 FG, 13 points, 5 assists
The storyline:
Pitt held a 50-42 lead over Point Park at halftime, but the Pioneers were more than game, hitting 48.6% on 18-of-37 shooting, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc. So while Pitt shot 47.2% in the first 20 minutes, it kept the game closer than it was expected to be.
That situation resolved itself in the second half. Pitt made 17 field goals after halftime - the same number the Panthers made in the first half - but Jeff Capel’s group pressured the ball more in the final 20 minutes, forcing Point Park to shoot 9-of-32 from the floor. The Pioneers scored just 20 points in that stretch and the Panthers pulled away.
Notables:
Pitt opened the game with the starting lineup most expected:
Jaland Lowe
Ishmael Leggett
Zack Austin
Guillermo Diaz Graham
Cam Corhen
The first sub came at the 16:14 mark of the first half when Houston transfer Damian Dunn replaced Austin.
- Pitt used eight unique lineups in the first half and only came back to the starting lineup once.
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Cummings/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Cummings/Dunn/J. Diaz Graham/G. Diaz Graham
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/J. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/Austin/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Pitt opened the second half with three guards and a five-man lineup that the Panthers didn’t use in the first half:
Jaland Lowe
Ishmael Leggett
Damian Dunn
Guillermo Diaz Graham
Cam Corhen
The staff went from that lineup back to the original starting lineup but didn’t repeat a lineup again after that.
Lowe/Leggett/Dunn/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Lowe/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Cummings/Leggett/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Cummings/Dunn/Austin/G. Diaz Graham/Kante
Cummings/Dunn/Austin/J. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Cummings/Austin/J. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Cummings/Dunn/J. Diaz Graham/Kante
Lowe/Cummings/Dunn/J. Diaz Graham/Corhen
Dunn/Cummings/Leggett/Ndiaye/Corhen
Dunn/Cummings/Barnes/Ndiaye/Kante
Cummings/Barnes/J. Diaz Graham/Ndiaye/Kante
- When Marlon Barnes entered the game with 4:29 left to play, Pitt had officially used all 11 available scholarship players.
- The game against Point Park was only an exhibition, but it did represent the Pitt debuts of freshmen Brandin Cummings and Amdy Ndiaye and transfers Cam Corhen and Damian Dunn, as well as Papa Amadou Kante, who redshirted with an injury last season.
- Corhen transferred to Pitt from Florida State this offseason, but his first time on the court at the Petersen Events Center in a Pitt uniform didn’t get off to a great start. In 15 minutes of playing time in the first half, Corhen grabbed six rebounds but only scored two points on 1-of-5 shooting. The second half was a different story, though, as Corhen scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting and added five more rebounds. The scoring came in a variety of ways, as Corhen hit jump shots and finished at the rim.
- Corhen made big plays in the second half, but Pitt’s leaders were the two top returning scorers: Lowe and Leggett. The two guards were the leading sources of offense in the first half, putting up 31 of the Panthers’ 50 points, often shutting down Point Park’s runs and making sure Pitt stayed in control.
- The lone scholarship player who was not available on Tuesday night was freshman wing Amsal Delalic, who suffered an injury on his shooting hand during practice and is wearing a cast. According to Capel, though, things are trending up.
“The cast is smaller, so he’s able to not do anything but he can at least catch the basketball,” Capel said after the game. “Hopefully if the appointment goes well on Thursday, he’ll be out of the cast and maybe in a soft splint.”
Capel said Delalic can “hopefully” be available for Pitt’s season opener against Radford on Monday, Nov. 4.
- Final box score:
