SB Nation Pittsburgh - Pitt Vs. Cincinnati: Panthers Take Advantage Of Gates-Less Bearcats, Winning 71-59https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48827/pitt-fv.png2011-02-05T20:28:17-05:00http://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/rss/stream/17400392011-02-05T20:28:17-05:002011-02-05T20:28:17-05:00Pitt Vs. Cincinnati: Panthers Back To Old Tricks At Home In Big Win
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<p>Pitt returned home for the first time nearly two weeks and after a loss and a close win, returned to form in a nice win against Cincinnati, winning 71-59 on Saturday.</p>
<p>The game was never in doubt as Pitt jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. The Panthers held leads of 20-points for a good part of the game until Cincinnati came back late to make the score look respectable.</p>
<p>Pitt was a bit short-handed in missing <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/100021/dante-taylor" class="sbn-auto-link">Dante Taylor</a>, <a target="new" href="http://www.cardiachill.com/2011/2/3/1973892/pitt-basketball-dante-taylor-out-with-injured-knee">who missed practice time this week with a knee injury</a>, and <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/100023/lamar-patterson" class="sbn-auto-link">Lamar Patterson</a>, who has been reportedly involved in a incident where he <a target="new" href="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_721441.html">skipped out on a restaurant bill</a>. But that was nothing compared to what Cincinnati had to deal with in missing its best player in Yancey Gates who was <a target="new" href="http://scores.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=310360221">suspended for a violation of team rules</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/52467/ashton-gibbs" class="sbn-auto-link">Ashton Gibbs</a> led the way tying his career-high of 25 points on 7-11 shooting (including a perfect 5-5 from three-point range) for Pitt. Meanwhile, the Bearcats’ offense sputtered for most of the night. No starter scored more than seven points and while reserve guard did have a team-high 13 points, he shot only 6-17 from the field to get there.</p>
<p>The biggest thing Pitt fans can take away from this win is that after having two games in a row where they were poor offensively, the team was much more crisp against Cincinnati. Pitt now holds a two-game lead in the Big East conference and has another short turnaround, facing West Virginia on the road on Monday.</p>
<p>For more post-game analysis, check out <a target="_blank" href="http://www.cardiachill.com/">SB Nation Pitt blog Cardiac Hill</a>.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/pittsburgh-panthers/2011/2/5/1977436/pitt-vs-cincinnati-yancey-gates-injured-panthers-bearcats-pitt-basketball-ashton-gibbsAnson Whaley2011-02-05T12:32:38-05:002011-02-05T12:32:38-05:00Pitt Vs. Cincinnati: Panthers Back In Action After Week Long Layoff
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<p>After a week off, Pitt is back in action on Saturday against the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/teams/cincinnati-bearcats" class="sbn-auto-link">Cincinnati Bearcats</a>.</p>
<p>Truth be told, Cincinnati wasn't expected to do much this year with the losses of <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/25995/deonta-vaughn" class="sbn-auto-link">Deonta Vaughn</a> and <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/99993/lance-stephenson" class="sbn-auto-link">Lance Stephenson</a>. But the Bearcats raced out to a 15-0 start and even though they've struggled a bit in Big East play, they have a pretty good chance at reaching the NCAA Tournament.</p>
<p>Cincinnati hasn't played an extremely difficult non-conference season, but wins over solid teams in Xavier, Oklahoma, and Dayton will definitely help their chances. And with five conference wins, 2-3 more should get them into the Big Dance.</p>
<p>Those wins are nice, but Cincinnati is <a target="_blank" href="http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110203/SPT0101/102040335/Bearcats-need-signature-win">still looking for that first big</a> win of the season:</p>
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<p>"You need those signature wins to get in," Gates said. "I think we still need to go out and get one."</p>
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<p>While that win could come Saturday (as Notre Dame proved Pitt can indeed be beaten at home), the Bearcats will have their hands full with Pitt. The Panthers are surely still disappointed in their last home game, even though it was nearly two weeks ago, and after a week off, head coach Jamie Dixon has likely had the Panthers working hard to avoid another letdown.</p>
<p>Vaughn and Stephenson are gone, but Pitt will still need to contend with Yancey Gates, who had a monster performance against Pitt last year (16 points, 14 rebounds, four blocks, and two steals). Gates is not a superstar, but as he proved last year, he's more than capable of posting a big game.</p>
<p>On Pitt's side, the team's depth could be challenged a bit if the injured <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/100021/dante-taylor" class="sbn-auto-link">Dante Taylor</a> isn't able to go. Taylor had been playing with sore knees and he aggravated the injury when he bumped knees with a teammate in practice. He hasn't practiced fully this week and he is questionable heading into the game. If Taylor cannot play, look for reserve power forward <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/100024/talib-zanna" class="sbn-auto-link">Talib Zanna</a> to get more minutes.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/2/5/2329203/pitt-vs-cincinnati-panthers-back-in-action-after-week-long-layoffAnson Whaley