Wright drops 31 in league debut

The 2013 Pittsburgh Basketball Club Pro-Am summer league rolled on Wednesday night at the Greentree Sportsplex. There weren't as many close outcomes as Monday, but Cameron Wright made his league debut and led all scorers with 31 points on the night.

PGT 97, UPMC 87

Five players hit double figures - three with at least 20 points - in PGT's second straight win to start the summer

Robert Morris' Dave Appolon led the way with 22 points including 3 of 5 shooting beyond the arc. Pitt's Talib Zanna netted 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds while Elijah Thompson chipped in 20 points on 9 of 11 shooting from the field.

PGT, which shot 63 percent (41 of 65) from the floor in the game, controlled the game from the opening tip. It built a 39-27 lead on a perfectly executed pick-and-roll that ended with a Zanna dunk from Desjuan Newton.

Zanna was also effective passing the ball, tallying seven assists. His most important helper came when UPMC brought the game within five - its closest margin in the second half. Zanna posted on the block and hit a cutting Britton Lee, who made the layup and drew the foul, putting PGT up 89-81.

Durand Johnson led UPMC with 27 points including a perfect 10 of 10 performance from the free-throw line in the second half. Mike McFadden of Robert Morris added 18 points and 10 rebounds while incoming Pitt freshman Josh Newkirk scored 13 points.

Oliverio's Peppers 100, South Hills Audi 91

Cameron Wright didn't play on opening night Monday, but he made his presence felt Wednesday night. The redshirt junior Pitt guard dropped 31 points and sparked a decisive 13-0 run in Oliverio's Peppers first win of the summer.

Wright converted 12 of 19 shots from the field including 2 for 2 beyond the arc, and he hit all five free-throw attempts. He struggled to find his rhythm at times, as evidenced by his five turnovers, but the Pitt guard sparked Oliverio's Peppers midway through the second half.

With his team down 66-61 following a Tracy Foster 3-pointer, Wright scored the next eight points straight. First, he knocked down a pull-up jumper and followed it with a 3-pointer of his own. Then, on a swift cut to the basket, the redshirt junior made the shot and drew the foul, converting the three-point play.

South Hills Audi wouldn't go away, cutting the lead to 88-87 with just over five minutes left in the game, but again Oliverio's Peppers and Wright responded with a run. His team went on an 8-2 with Wright scoring six of the eight points, knocking down an elbow jumper, a pair of free throws and a runner he arced high off the glass to make it 96-89.

Pitt alum Chevron Troutman led South Hills Audi by scoring 25 of his 29 points in the first half as Nolan Cressler added 21 points on 5 of 9 from 3-point range. Their team actually started the game with a 12-0 run, capped by Cressler's first three. At that point, he hit three-in-a-row to open an 18-5 lead.

SPK 80, GNC 79

SPK overcame a rough shooting night - 40.6 percent from the field - with excellent free-throw shooting to hold on for a win over GNC. Patterson led the way with 20 points including a perfect 9 of 9 from the free-throw line.

Four of those free throws came in the last 22 seconds. After a GNC's Karvel Anderson jumper put his team up one, Patterson knocked down a pair to make it 77-76. Youngstown's State Kendrick Perry made it a two-point lead before GNC threw away its inbound pass. Patterson then nailed another two free throws to seal the win.

The redshirt senior also added seven rebounds and seven assists, finding ways to contribute during his 5 of 16 shooting performance. His highlight helper came in transition after making a steal when he found Perry for an alley-oop in transition to put SPK up 59-53.

Perry returned the favor with under three minutes left after GNC's Derrick Colter hit a contested three over Patterson to make it a one-point game. After trading possessions, Perry led SPK in transition. He drew his defender in while driving toward the hoop, then deftly hit Patterson with a behind-the-back pass for a dunk to put SPK up 72-69.

Anderson led GNC with 22 points. Colter paced the team with 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists. The Duquesne guard also hit a running three-pointer at the game's final buzzer to make bring GNC's margin of defeat to one point.

Standings

1. PGT 2-0

2. SPK 2-0

3. The Lair 1-0

4. Oliverio's Peppers 1-1

5. South Hills Audi 0-1

6. GNC 0-2

7. UPMC 0-2