Pitt overpowers Davidson 94-69 at Madison Square Garden

Davidson did a lot of good work early in its game Sunday against Pittsburgh at Madison Square Garden.

But whatever was going well for the Wildcats quickly vanished midway through the first half of a 94-69 loss against the ACC’s Panthers in the feature game of the Gotham Classic.

The Wildcats led by seven points, 24-17, when Brian Sullivan hit a 3-pointer with 10 minutes left in the first half. But that’s when Pitt went on a 33-14 run to finish the half. That was bad enough for Davidson (7-2), except that the Panthers continued to step on the gas the rest of the way.

Pitt (9-1), which got 22 points from forward Michael Young, shot 54.5 percent from the field and made 9-of-20 3-pointers. The bigger Panthers also outrebounded the Wildcats 52-31, including 38-16 on the defensive end.

But it was what the Panthers did defensively to Davidson that was the real difference. Pitt clamped down on the Wildcats’ free-wheeling offense, holding Davidson to 34.8 shooting and a season low 20.0 percent (6-of-30) from behind the arc. The Wildcats didn’t even shoot free throws well (15 of 26).

“We got away from doing what got us the lead,” said Davidson point guard Jack Gibbs (21 points). “We got beat by a team that was more athletic, stronger and faster.”

Panthers coach Jamie Dixon said his team practiced hard for Davidson and its offense, which is predicated by a lot of movement and screens.

“(The Wildcats) are different and they are good,” said Dixon. “We learned some things offensively from them that helped us. We can use some of the concepts that they do.”

3 who mattered

Michael Young: Pitt’s forward led the charge down low, scoring 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting and grabbing six rebounds.

Peyton Aldridge: Sophomore forward helped Davidson get off to a strong start by making two 3-pointers. Finished with 19 points and six rebounds.

Jack Gibbs: Davidson’s leading scorer had 21 points, but was just eight for 20 from the field and missed all six of his 3-point attempts.

Worth mentioning

▪ Davidson forward Jake Belford missed his third consecutive game after suffering a concussion against North Carolina on Dec. 6.

▪ Former Wildcats point guard Jason Richards – many of whose school-record 663 career assists went to Stephen Curry – is Pitt’s video coordinator and director of analytics.

▪ Davidson is now 5-4 all-time at Madison Square Garden. The Wildcats’ previous appearances in the Garden came in December 2010, when they lost against St. John’s and beat St. Francis (N.Y.) on successive days.

▪ Davidson finishes play in the Gotham Classic with a home game Wednesday against Morehead State.

Observations

▪ Davidson started the game in impressive fashion, making five of its first eight 3-pointers. Peyton Aldridge, who has struggled with his 3-point shot, had 15 points by halftime for the Wildcats, going 6-for-8 from the floor and making 2-of-3 3-pointers.

▪ Nathan Ekwu, at 6-foot-7 one Davidson’s bigger players, had three fouls in the first half, helping Pitt to its advantage on the boards.

▪ With Belford’s continued absence and freshmen KiShawn Pritchett and Dusan Kovacevic missing the season with injuries, Davidson’s depth will continue to be tested. Eight players remain in coach Bob McKillop’s rotation – starters Oskar Michelsen, Jordan Barham, Gibbs, Brian Sullivan and Aldridge, with Andrew McAuliffe, Jordan Watkins and Ekwu off the bench.

They said it

“The magical world of Madison Square Garden wasn’t magical for our shooting or our defense. Certainly we have to credit Pitt for causing that magic to disappear.” – McKillop.

“Our defense was sound against a really good offensive team.” – Dixon.

“You want to play in one of the greatest gyms in the world, but when you got out and play like that, it takes away from the magic.” – Gibbs.

This story was originally published December 20, 2015 at 3:59 PM with the headline "Pitt overpowers Davidson 94-69 at Madison Square Garden."