Gannon Exhibition Game Recap and Analysis

On Friday November 6th The University of Pittsburgh took on Gannon University in exhibition play. As expected the Panthers cruised to an 80-50 win over the Golden Knights. On Friday November 13th it is the real deal for Pitt when they open their season play in Okinawa against Gonzaga.

After starting the game 1-10 shooting from the floor it was evident the Panthers were still a little rusty. However, they were able to shake off that poor start to dominant the rest of the way. James Robinson helped guide Dixon’s offense totaling 13 points on six shots and making all three 3-pointers he attempted on the evening. Jamel Artis and Cameron Johnson both tied Robinson for the team high in points as they registered 13 points apiece. While on the rebounding front big man Alonzo Nelson-Ododa led the way with nine rebounds.

In Dixon’s postgame press conference he seemed to be pleased overall with how his team played. He did mention a need for the defensive play to be a little better and was upset his players lost some focus with a big lead. However, he mentioned how much he likes the depth this team has. Three other things worth noting from his press conference are, one that Rozelle Nix will be redshirted for this season, two Damon Wilson was absent due to a hamstring injury, and three that his starting rotation is not set in stone yet.

Even though this was just an exhibition game it still provided some valuable insight leading into Friday night’s tilt against Gonzaga. First off the team showed a much better shooting touch than expected. The team shot 7-16 from three and 29-39 from the line. The free throw shooting should be more encouraging than the long range shooting. For one, free throws do not change from game to game, it is always an uncontested shot from 15 feet away, while threes can be more contested or easier with less pressure while playing a lower quality opponent. Both are good signs though, as the Panthers struggled in each of those spots last season shooting 68.5% from the line and 33.9% from three a year ago.

The other noteworthy insight provided is that Alonzo Nelson-Ododa continues to play as the team’s best big man. Rafael Maia has struggled with injuries to get back into the system and Nix is being redshirted. That leaves Alonzo, who has really played well so far this pre-season. Also, it seems as if Dixon would like to use Cameron Johnson more this year. In his postgame press conference he noted that he would be calling plays specifically to get Johnson shots.

As a whole this game will not set the college basketball world on fire, Pitt did what was expected of them. What will set it on fire though is if their improved shooting can carry overseas to Okinawa when they play the Zags this Friday. They will need it if they expect to pull of the upset.