Bradford, Pa. -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men's basketball team scored the program's most points in a game since joining the NCAA in 1998, defeating the Alfred State Pioneers 135-92 in KOA Arena, Wednesday night.
After flirting with attacking the record multiple times earlier this season, Pitt-Bradford finally completed a push for the milestone after finishing with 116, 113, 120, and 124 points in previous home victories. The Panthers broke the old mark set by the 2005-06 team in a 131-119 victory over Marietta College.
The Panthers quickly jumped out to an early lead, scoring the first 6 points of the contest. Keshon Kittrell made a layup after 7 seconds and then after a defensive stop, Jamarion Butler drove to the basket for a quick layup. On the ensuing possession, Butler stole the ball and found Braylen Salters for an early slam dunk on the break. The visitors quickly woke up from their slow start, catching fire from beyond the arc. They made threes on five of the next six possessions to take a 16-12 lead after 6 minutes of action. Trailing 18-14, Jeremy Rodriguez drove to the basket for a layup, starting a Panther rally that would give them the lead for good. He made two more field goals around a Jesse Laster free-throw and then Xavion Boone made a layup on the break to put the Panthers up 5. A Pioneer field goal slowed the rally for a moment, but the Panthers quickly went back to work, as Butler made another layup, fed Boone for two, and then stole the ball and threw down a dunk to force an Alfred State time-out.
After the timeout, the Pioneers converted a few short jump shots, but could not cut into the lead as Xander Norris and Coby Farley responded with baskets of their own. Braylen Salters made threes on consecutive possessions and then following a Pitt-Bradford timeout Butler went on a personal 7-4 run. A Farley three pushed the lead to 20 with 5 minutes remaining in the half. The Pitt-Bradford offense continued to score inside after the three when Butler dunked off an inbound pass, Farley made a floating jumper and Norris swished a midrange shot. Nasier Starks drove through contact for a layup and Butler made one final basket in the final seconds to send the game to halftime with Pitt-Bradford leading 60-41.
In the second half, Pitt-Bradford continued their offensive onslaught, scoring 6 more points in two minutes through a Boone layup, two Salters free throws, and a pull-up jumper from Butler. Pitt-Bradford called a quick timeout and then despite a Pioneer three on the next possession, added to their lead with two free throws, a Farley three, and another fast-break slam from Butler. Leading 80-57, the Panthers went on another run, scoring 9 unanswered. Salters started the rally with a three and then Butler and Tra Edwards made short jumpers around a Pioneer turnover. The Panthers punctuated the run in their trademarked high-flying fashion. After Alfred Stare broke their initial press, Jesse Laster acrobatically blocked a layup attempt which was rebounded and saved by Farley. LAster got the ball ahead to Butler who lobbed a pass off the backboard for Laster who slammed home the finish, sending the Panther bench and home crowd into a frenzy.
Following an Alfred State timeout, the Panthers quickly added to their lead from distance. Logan Joncas hit a pair of threes around a third by Kittrell, sending the Panthers over the 100-point mark with 10 minutes remaining in the game. Pitt-Bradford began to open up their rotation but were still able to score as Samuel Brown made a layup and two free throws around driving baskets from Chris Martin and Farley. With 5:44 to go, Dante Sanchez swished a three and on the next possession NAsier Starks converted a layup through contact to extend the lead to 40. Later on, Blake KRiznaric made a layup and a three around a layup by Tommy Walton to push the Panthers to their season-high output of 126 points, but they were not through yet. Sanchez made a pair of free throws and then converted a three-point play on the next possession to tie the program mark. After another stop, Walton broke the record with a free throw and then Martin converted a final three-point play to set the new record at 135 points.
Individually, Jamarion Butler led the Panthers, scoring 27 points in just 24 minutes of action. He was highly efficient, making 12-15 from the field, including 1-3 from beyond the arc. 5 other Panthers were also able to reach double figures in the win. Braylen Salters added 13 points, while Xavion Boone had 11 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. From the bench, Coby Farley scored 12 points, While Dante Sanchez and Jeremy Rodriguez both added 10. Xander Norris just missed out on a double-double, finishing with 9 points and 10 rebounds.
The win moves Pitt-Bradford to 13-1 on the season, with a 6-0 mark in conference play. They will look to continue their program-best start on Saturday when they host Pitt-Greensburg. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. in KOA Arena.
