The Pitt-Bradford men's basketball team built an 11-point halftime lead and hung on to defeat Otterbein 63-59 at the Geneva College Coaches vs. Cancer Tipoff Tournament.
The Panthers will face the host Golden Tornadoes in the championship game Saturday at 3 p.m.
Trailing 10-9 early in the contest, the Panthers used a 20-5 run to pull ahead by 12. The lead would stretch to 14 on Christian Kelly-Perkins' only basket of the game, and Pitt-Bradford would carry a 33-22 lead into the break.
In the second half, Otterbein trimmed the advantage to four on four separate occasions yet the Panthers would answer each time. Pitt-Bradford went 7-10 from the line over the final minute to ice the game.
The Panthers shot 42 percent from the floor and dominated inside, outscoring the Cardinals 38-18 in the paint. Pitt-Bradford overcame Otterbein connecting for 10 three-pointers by outrebounding the Cardinals by eight and scoring 15 second-chance points.
Evan Greening collected a double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds, Manny Welch added 13 points and Fateem Brockington had 10 points. Jaewon Mitchell pulled down 12 rebounds, and Sahlil Harris had a pair of steals.
With the victory, Pitt-Bradford improves to 1-1 on the season.