Pittsburgh pulled away from visiting Canisius late at home Saturday, fending off a solid Golden Griffins 3-point shooting effort in an 82-71 victory.
Blake Hinson bucketed 26 points and pulled down five rebounds for the Panthers (7-3), while Carlton Carrington added 16 points, five assists, and four rebounds.
With a pair of 3-pointers, Ishmael Leggett bookended a Federiko Federiko layup to power an 8-0 charge that put Pitt ahead for good with 6:37 to play.
Canisius led by as much as seven points in the second half prior to that sequence. By showing off their 3-point shooting prowess, the Golden Griffins (6-5) kept pace until the final eight minutes of the contest.
Canisius entered the matchup tops in the MAAC in average 3-pointers made (9.2) and 3-point field goal percentage (39.3 percent). The Golden Griffins went 7-for-17 (41.2 percent) from deep in the first half and led 41-40 at the half.
The lead changed hands six times before halftime, the last instance coming when Canisius’ Siem Uijtendaal knocked down a pair of free throws with 1:37 to go. At two junctures Pitt led by five, but the score stayed within three for most of the half.
William Jeffress’ trey to open scoring in the latter half gave the Panthers a short-lived advantage. That basket was answered by a Frank Mitchell layup that kicked off an 8-0 Canisius surge over the next 2:54. The Golden Griffins’ lead swelled to 54-47 with Uijtendaal’s and-one with 13:15 to play.
Pitt’s Carrington, Jorge Diaz Graham and Hinson sank 3-pointers as part of a 9-2 run that flipped the scoreboard 2:41 later.
Uijtendaal paced Canisius with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists. Tre Dinkins had 15 points and Mitchell a dozen.
Leggett rounded out Pitt’s double-digit scoring with 13 points. He also had five boards and five assists.
Canisius made just two 3-pointers in the second half.
–Field Level Media