Behind a 40-point thumping of Binghamton on Wednesday, Pitt’s men’s basketball team managed some stabilization following three straight defeats.
While beating up on an America East foe offered something to build off, a taller task awaits Sunday in Hershey, as the Panthers face Penn State for their final nonconference game.
At noon, the Panthers and Nittany Lions tip off from the Giant Center, home of the American Hockey League’s Hershey Bears, in what will be the first NCAA basketball game hosted by the venue.
The 149th all-time meeting between Pitt and Penn State will be broadcast by the Big Ten Network.
The last time the two teams played on the hardwood was 2017, when the Nittany Lions scored a 31-point win over Pitt at the Legends Classic in Brooklyn. Penn State owns a 76-72 all-time record against Pitt, a matchup first played in 1906 but only nine times this century.
Pitt (6-6) has struggled away from Petersen Events Center this season — 0-2 on the road and 0-1 on neutral courts.
Penn State (8-3) enters Sunday having lost two straight, an 113-72 beatdown at the hands of Indiana followed by a close 76-72 defeat to No. 9 Michigan State.
Rivalry review
The Panthers and Nittany Lions met annually from 1935-82, mostly twice a year.
Over that span, Pitt went 45-50 and on Jan. 14, 1967, suffered its largest-ever loss to Penn State, 84-44.
Starting in 1983, after the Panthers joined the Big East and Penn State (through 1990-91) joined the Atlantic 10, matchups ceased until the two squads met in the 1992 NIT, with Pitt winning 67-65 in the Round of 32.
Including that contest, Pitt and Penn State have played 10 times in the last 33 years, with the Panthers going 8-2.
Early on, the going was tough for the Panthers, as they went 5-17 against Penn State from 1906-22. But from 1926-41, Pitt went 20-6.
One of Pitt’s worst stretches against Penn State was undoubtedly the 1960s, as the Nittany Lions won 15 of the decade’s 20 showdowns.
Before their last meeting in Brooklyn in 2017, which snapped a seven-game Panthers winning streak, Pitt and Penn State played a year prior in Newark, N.J.. The Panthers won that game 81-73.
Pitt’s most recent appearance in State College was on Dec. 7, 2002. Penn State last played at Petersen Events Center on Dec. 3, 2013.
About Penn State
The Panthers and Nittany Lions share one common opponent in the Providence Friars.
While it was an exhibition, Pitt beat the Friars, 81-74, on Oct. 19, while Penn State was defeated 77-65 on Nov. 22.
Penn State checks in at No. 103 in the country in the NET rankings, with Pitt positioned at No. 152.
True freshman guard Kayden Mingo, the highest-ranked recruit in the history of Penn State men’s basketball, currently leads the Nittany Lions with 15 points per game, tying for the team lead in rebounds (4.1).
Mingo has hit 48.1% of his shots from the field to date, has a team-high 48 assists and a 4:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Freddie Dilione V is back for Penn State and has taken more strides as his redshirt junior campaign has gotten underway.
He averages 14.2 points per contest, shooting 50.4% from the floor and 38.5% from behind the arc, with a team-high 39 3-point attempts.
Coach Mike Rhoades has primarily utilized a nine-man rotation. Melih Tunca (12.1 points per game), Ivan Juric (9.7) and Josh Reed (9.5) are other key offensive contributors for Penn State.
Mingo, Juric and Reed are the only players averaging north of 4.1 rebounds per game, while Dominick Stewart (42.1%) and Eli Rice (46.9%) are among the Nittany Lions’ top 3-point-shooting threats.