Bradford, Pa. -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men's basketball team lost its first AMCC contest on Saturday afternoon, falling to Penn State-Behrend 69-62.
The Panthers started the game strong, getting a defensive stop on the opening possession before Jamarion Butler started the scoring with a long three. After five straight from the Lions, Robert Richards made a layup but the visitors countered with two threes around a Jesse Laster midrange jumper to go ahead 11-7 through five minutes of play. The Panthers battled right back and scored five straight of their own with a Xander Norris three and a Jeremy Rodriguez layup to go in front. Norris made another three to answer a Penn State-Behrend layup to put the Panthers up two, however, the Lions moved into the lead with a pair of layups and a free throw.
The visitors maintained a small advantage for the next two minutes until Butler followed a Rodriguez jump shot with a driving layup to tie the game at 22. The Lions retook the lead on the next possession, and then locked down the Panther offense, limiting Pitt-Bradford to two points over the next 5 minutes, a Braylen Salters jump shot, to build a 13-point advantage. Norris closed the half his third three of the game and the Panthers headed to the locker room trailing 37-27.
Pitt-Bradford made some adjustments at the half and came out of the break firing. They scored the first eight points of the 2nd, trimming the deficit to just two points after 4 minutes of action. Rodriguez and Xavion Boone made baskets in the rally, while Butler added a pair of layups. The Lions slowed the Panthers' charge over the next few minutes of action, but the Panthers continued to answer, keeping the lead between 2 and 4 points. With just under 10 minutes remaining, Rodriguez followed a Butler jump shot with two of his own to tie the game at 48.
The visitors responded and jumped back in front on the next possession, however, threes from Rodriguez and Laster kept the game tied. Butler made a long two to tie the game at 56 with 3:30 to go, however, the next two possessions changed the game as the Lions converted back-to-back three-point plays around a defensive stop and then added a pair of free throws to go ahead by 8 with 2:14 on the clock. Salters and Butler each made three-pointers late to cut the lead down to 5 points, however, the Panthers could not complete the comeback and ultimately fell 69-62.
Jamarion Butler led the Panthers with his 9th double-double of the season. He scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Jeremy Rodriguez scored added 15 points, while Xander Norris finished with 10. The Panthers lost the battle of philosophies, as they were held 46 points below their season average. They were limited in their attempts to score, as they took 14 fewer field goal attempts than their average, and 24 fewer free throws than their NCAA-leading 30 per game
Before the start of the action, the Panthers recognized five seniors who have been a part of the Pitt-Bradford basketball rebuild over the past two years. Jamarion Butler, Keshon Kittrell, Coby Farley, and Jesse Laster have all been with the program for two seasons, while Robert Richards joined the team this season.
The loss drops Pitt-Bradford to 20-2 on the season, with a 13-1 record in AMCC play. They will return to action on Wednesday when they host Penn State-Altoona in their second attempt to secure an outright regular season title, and the #1 seed in the AMCC Championship Tournament. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. in KOA Arena.
