Spokesman-Review
National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Pittsburgh 78, Connecticut 63
When: 8:30 PM ET, Monday, December 27, 2010
Where: Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Officials: # Jim Burr, # Jeff Clark, # Ed Corbett
Attendance: 12725

Ashton Gibbs led the way with 21 points and seven assists and Brad Wanamaker added 14 points as No. 6 Pittsburgh took down No. 4 Connecticut, 78-63, in the Big East opener for both schools on Monday.

Gary McGhee chipped in 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Panthers (13-1, 1-0 Big East), who held Connecticut to 32 percent shooting in improving to 8-0 all-time against top-5 teams at the Peterson Events Center.

Pittsburgh limited the nation’s leading scorer, Kemba Walker, to 10 points on 3-of-12 shooting in the first half and held the Huskies to 30 percent (10-of-33) from the floor. The Panthers were much more efficient on offense in the first 20 minutes, taking only 19 shots but making 11 of them to go into the locker room with a 37-28 edge.

It was the same story after the break, with Gibbs taking control on the offensive end and Pittsburgh continuing to force the Huskies (10-1, 0-1) into its style.

Walker finished with 31 points but shot just 10-of-27 from the floor for Connecticut, which did not have another player reach double figures.
Top Game Performances
 
Connecticut   Pittsburgh
Kemba Walker 31 Scoring Ashton Gibbs 21
Shabazz Napier 2 Assists Ashton Gibbs 7
Jeremy Lamb 8 Rebounds Gary McGhee 11
Kemba Walker 8 Free Throws Made Ashton Gibbs 6
Kemba Walker 5 Steals Brad Wanamaker 2
Charles Okwandu 4 Blocks Gary McGhee 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Connecticut 63 31.7 5-21 20-26 6 31 7 8
Pittsburgh 78 52.1 5-11 23-30 19 32 5 6