GREENSBURG, Pa: Six seniors combined to score all 79 points for the Pitt-Greensburg men's basketball team, capping a thrilling 79-73 come-from-behind victory over Grove City in the season opener.
The Bobcats erased a 15 point halftime deficit and outscored the Wolverines 47-28 in the second half to start the season 1-0. Grove City falls to 0-1 on the season.
After shooting just 34% from the floor in the first half, including an uncharacteristic 1-9 from 3 point range, the Bobcats erupted in the second twenty minutes. In the second half, Pitt-Greensburg fired off 16 of 30 from the floor (53.33%) including an impressive 7 of 16 from 3 point range.
The resilient Bobcat squad slowly chipped away at the deficit, and grabbed their first lead of the game with 9:35 remaining on a
Mike Connelly (Butler, PA, St. Joseph) layup. Once they got the lead, they never looked back, gutting out their first victory of the season.
Pitt-Greensburg was led by
Jerell Figueroa (Dover, PA, Dover Area), who went off in the second half, scoring 18 of his game high 27 points. The senior finished with 27 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals in 35 minutes of work.
Fellow senior
Rocco Contristano (Pittsburgh, PA, Keystone Oaks) finished the game with 20 points including a perfect 9 for 9 from the free throw line, despite playing down the stretch with 4 fouls. Classmates
Marcus Thomas (Uniontown, PA, Uniontown), 12 points 9 rebounds, and
Mike Connelly, 15 points 6 rebounds, each contributed to the win playing over 25 minutes apiece.
Senior
Jarrett Shannon (Duncansville, PA, Hollidaysburg) knocked down a huge three point basket with 1:30 left to extend the Bobcat lead to 6, pushing the Wolverines to the brink of defeat.
Contristano was 4 for 4 on free throws in the final 20 seconds to seal the victory for UPG.
Pitt-Greensburg will travel this weekend to York, PA to participate in the York Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament. The Bobcats will square off with McDaniel College on Friday night followed by a Saturday afternoon matchup with either York College or Wilson College.
