By HUNTER O. LYLE
lyleoleanstar@gmail.com
BRADFORD, PA – As the season rolls on, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford’s men’s basketball team seems to only heat up, winning their fourth consecutive game of the season as they rolled over Alfred University 113-66.
Playing in their newly-implemented and revamped system, the Panthers looked to set the tone early on the defensive side of the ball with a tough full-court-press. Between fast rotations, double-teams in the back-court and active hands in the passing lane, Pitt-Bradford managed to create turnovers on three out of the Saxons’ first possessions.
While they were able to create stops on defense, the offense took a few minutes longer to flush out. Scraping together extra trips down the floor, the Panthers struggled to put the ball in the net as they took jumpshot after jumpshot with mixed results. However, their ability to pick off passes and force Alfred errors kept them in front and after the first eight minutes of play, Pitt-Bradford held a 16-11 lead.
“I thought we were settling too much early. We shoot well at home, naturally, but I thought we were settling too much,” said Pitt-Bradford head coach Jesse DeLoof. “When we get a steal, with the athletes we have, I want it to be to the rim, to the rim, to the rim. Granted, we were shooting well but we can go on a drought shooting threes. We’re not going to go on a drought attacking the rim.”
Mid-way through the period, the Panthers caught fire. Starting with a Jamarion Butler jumper and followed by a Jesse Lester steal and slam dunk, Pitt-Bradford kicked off their best scoring run this season. While Alfred struggled with just getting the ball across half-court without turning it over, the Panthers scored from every inch of the court, pouring in 13 unanswered points, 11 of which came consecutively from Coby Farley. That stretch only worsened as the Saxons suffered six successive turnovers that allowed Pitt-Bradford to embark on a 21-1 run in just over three minutes.
With five and a half minutes remaining in the first half, the Panthers had put themselves up 41-18. While Alfred was able to counter late in the period with a brief run, they were unable to change the tide. A full-court outlet pass to the finishing Rodd Yarbrough and subsequent score would put the Panthers up 20 going into the break.
“(Alfred) struggled with our pressure. Our style isn’t a run-and-gun, it’s defense,” said DeLoof, whose squad forced 20 first-half turnovers. “It’s defense, it’s get stops, get steals and then the offense feeds off of that. People think it’s just run-and-gun, chucking threes, but it’s all based off of defense.”
Despite the respite, Pitt-Bradford could still smell the blood in the water, opening the second half with seven unanswered points, five of which came from Xavion Boone. Alfred would finally counter with their own run, but before long, their turnover troubles reemerged, allowing Pitt-Bradford to spark a 14-1 run.
With the game already decided, Pitt-Bradford began rotating in their reserves yet still found seemingly effortless ways to score. Between Butler tearing up the paint, Braylen Salters knocking down shots beyond the arc and Yarbrough dominating above the rim, it appeared as if nothing could stop the Panthers.
At the eight minute mark, Pitt-Bradford had pushed the gap on the scoreboard to 30, before a lineup entirely made up of bench players increased it to 40. As the listless Saxons continuously struggled to find ways to just play basketball, the Panthers kept their foot on the pedal. As the final buzzer sounded, they had earned their biggest win of the season.
“I think this is the first team since we became a part of the NCAA that’s started 4-0, which is huge,” said DeLoof. “That wasn’t a goal of ours, we didn’t aim to break the record. Our goal is to practice hard every day and be ready to play and I think we’ve done that as a whole.”
Twelve Panthers ended the night recording at least one steal as they tallied 42 points off of turnovers. Salters and Farley tied for the team high with three, with Salters also finishing with 19 points, five rebounds and three assists and Farley ending with 16 points, two rebounds and a pair of assists. Butler was one of three Panthers to have two steals, also leading the team in scoring with 23 points. Leading the bench, Yarbrough ended with 20 points, five rebounds and two assists.
“This is a fun system to play in. It’s really fun because everyone gets up,” said Yarbrough. “If you look on the scoresheet, we got more shots then them (91 to 58) and that’s how we like to play. For me, I was just hustling and my teammates found me.”
