Bradford, PA -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men's basketball team returned home on Wednesday evening, as they hosted the AMCC leaders, Penn State-Behrend. The Panthers struggled to find their range against the tough Lions defense and were defeated 70-48.
The Panthers started the game with a basket on their first possession, a Kaleb Pryor floating jump shot, but were unable to keep up with the visitors early. The Lions scored on their first four possessions, and eventually pushed their lead to 8 before Coby Farley got the Panthers back on the board with a pair of free throws. The Panthers kept the lead at 10 points and even cut it back to 7 after a Xavion Boone three-point play; however, they could not maintain the momentum, and Penn State-Behrend answered with a 13-2 run. Jeremy Rodriguez ended a three-minute scoring drought with a driving layup, but the visitors closed the half with 8 unanswered points and led 39-15 at the break.
After the restart, the Panthers had a strong start, scoring the first four points of the 2nd half on layups from Rodriguez and Boone. They were unable to cut into the lead for the first 7 mintues of the half, as the Lions answered each Panther basket with some of their own. Pitt-Bradford made a short run at the Lions with 13:25 on the clock. After a Tra Edwards jumper was answered by the Lions, Farley drove to the basket for a layup. Niare Poplar was able to steal the ball in the back court on the next possession, and then found Rodriguez in the corner for an open three, forcing a Penn State-Behrend timeout.
For the next 7 minutes, the Panthers could not cut into the deficit, as the visitors continued to find answers for each Panther field goal, eventually extending their lead to 31 points. They were able to find some rhythm in the final three minutes, closing the game with a 9-0 run. Xander Norris started the rally with a layup and a three, and then, after making two free throws, Clarence Cobbins stole the ball in the back court, which led to another Rodriguez layup. It was too little too late for the Panthers, as the teams ran out the final 44 seconds of the game without changing the score.
Jeremy Rodriguez led the Panthers with 13 points in the game. He also collected a team high 4 rebounds and 3 steals. Coby Farley scored 10 points off the bench, while Xander Norris finished with 8.
The loss drops the Panthers to 9-7 on the year with a 4-3 mark in AMCC play. The Panthers will be back in action at home on Saturday, when they host Mount Aloysius in another AMCC contest.
