Tonight, Pitt will go for the third time in the 31-game regular season as the 2-0 Panthers welcome Gardner-Webb to the Petersen Events Center for a 7:00 p.m. tip. Pitt scored two double-digit victories last week, and will be looking for just its third 3-0 start under current head coach Jeff Capel.
Standing in the Panthers way will be Garner-Webb, who enters this contest as an 18.5 underdog. Gardner-Webb, located in Boiling Springs, NC, is led by first-year head coach Jeremy Luther. The program was picked to finish sixth in the Big South preseason poll, just ahead of Radford, a team Pitt defeated 96-56 last Monday.
The Runnin' Bulldogs are 1-1 on the year. The team opened the season last week at No. 12 Tennessee, dropping an 80-64 contest to the Volunteers. Gardner-Webb then held off North Carolina Central 88-82 on Saturday. Through two games, it has been two players doing most of the damage. Darryl Simmons, a 5-11 sophomore, is averaging 20 per game. Senior Anthony Selden is right behind him at 19.5 per contest. Selden, a 6-6 senior, spent three seasons at Gardner-Webb before transferring to Rice for a season before returning.
The Panthers looked sharp last week when they needed to be. After playing around a bit in the opener, Pitt closed the first half against Radford on a 19-5 run to eventually explode for a 40-point victory. Murray State then hung with Pitt for a while before the Panthers squeezed the life out of them. The Racers went ahead at 63-62 at the 9:11 mark, but then Pitt held them to just five points for the remainder of the game in an impressive 83-68 win.
Jaland Lowe and Ishmael Leggett fueled both of those wins. The talented backcourt has been the catalyst, but Pitt has seen real contributions from most of its major minute getters. Damian Dunn notched 18 points against Murray State. Zack Austin had an impressive showing with eight rebounds and five blocks. Who will step up tonight? The Panther-Lair.com staff gives their picks.
Stephen Gertz (2-0, 1-1 ATS) - I do not think the Pittsburgh Panthers will have to sweat this one out late into the second half tonight as they did on Friday. If they can collectively stay out of foul trouble, I think they will cruise to a comfortable double-digit victory. The Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs will need career games from Darryl Simmons II and Anthony Selden if they want to prevail on Pitt's home floor. The problem for Gardner-Webb is that they do not have a lot of other options. Shooting just 29% on three-pointers as a team, with Simmons II and Selden two of just four players to have made one through two games, the Runnin' Bulldogs are not a team built to come from behind. A 16-point loss to the Tennessee Volunteers on the road will get the Panthers’ attention and I do not expect them to play down to their competition. The reality is Jaland Lowe, Ishamel Leggett, and Damian Dunn are better than Gardner-Webb's guards. The real question for me here is how Amsal Delalic will look and how does that impact Pitt's current rotation, especially along the wing.
Prediction: Pitt 82-67
Jim Hammett (2-0, 2-0 ATS) - Pitt was pushed last Friday, and I think that was a good thing. Not every non-conference game needs to be a blowout, and teams like Murray State are dangerous. Because of that, I thought it pushed the Panthers a little bit and look for different ways to win. Lowe experienced some foul trouble and still finished with 19 points, but other guys needed to step up because of that. Damian Dunn looked good, Cam Corhen had a double-double, and Ish Leggett just did his thing. This is a team already with multiple scoring options, size, and athleticism and will add another piece to the puzzle with Amsal Delalic set to make his Pitt debut. As we saw already, Pitt had little trouble with an average team out of the Big South, so I'm thinking a similar outcome to last Monday.
Prediction: Pitt 89-63
Matt Steinbrink (2-0, 0-2 ATS) - Gardner-Webb has a few intriguing guards for the Big South level that should do quite well this season. The good news for Pitt in this one tonight is that they have some special guards themselves. When you have three high-level guards, it’s a great advantage for a coaching staff. It should not be quite as easy as the Radford game, but also not as challenging as the Murray State game.
Prediction: Pitt 83-62
Houston Wilson (2-0, 0-2 ATS) - After a more competitive game on Friday against Murray State, Pitt welcomes in Gardner-Webb, which will most likely not provide as big of a challenge as Murray State. Pitt's most important assignment will be slowing down Darryl Simmons II, who is averaging 20 points through two games for Gardner Webb. If Pitt can keep him under 20 points, I think Pitt wins easily, similar to their opener against Radford last week.
Prediction: Pitt 83-65
Chris Peak (2-0, 2-0 ATS) - Tonight’s game is one of those where my prediction is based less on what I think Gardner-Webb can/will do and more about what I think Pitt can/will do. And to that end, I think Pitt can and will play well and win. By quite a bit. For as good as Pitt’s guards have been so far this season, I actually think the group is going to keep evolving and getting better as they get more and more comfortable together. Tonight, the quartet of Jaland Lowe, Ishmael Leggett, Damian Dunn and Brandin Cummings will face a GW team that gave up 57 points to Tennessee’s top four guards in the season opener. I think Pitt’s guards will go off as well. Isaiah Richards can provide some size off the bench for the Bulldogs and top guard Darryl Simmons could provide some punch on the offensive end, but I’m expecting the Panthers to exert their will tonight.
Prediction: Pitt 100-75
