Freshman Zanna does dirty work in Pittsburgh's win
Pittsburgh Panthers forward Talib Zanna (42) knocks Maryland Terrapins guard Sean Mosley (14) to the floor as he rebounds the basketball in the first half of game one of the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs Cancer. (Nov. 18, 2010) Credit: Christopher Pasatieri
Last season's 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer was the occasion for the unveiling of Syracuse transfer forward Wesley Johnson, whose spectacular performance against North Carolina was the precursor to his selection as Big East player of the year and No. 4 pick in the NBA draft.
The semifinal matching No. 4 Pitt and Maryland in this season's tournament wasn't quite as dramatic, but the time might come when Panthers fans recall it as the coming-out party for freshman forward Talib Zanna.
Everyone knows Pitt's guard combination of Ashton Gibbs and Brad Wanamaker is among the elite backcourt pairings in the country, but Zanna's 14-point, 12-rebound performance in the Panthers' 79-70 victory last night at the Garden is important because it shows coach Jamie Dixon's team can hurt you from inside, too.
In the other semifinal matchup, No. 16 Illinois lost to No. 22 Texas in overtime, 90-84. Tonight's championship game is scheduled for 7 o'clock.
Maryland coach Gary Williams came away from the experience as an admirer of Zanna. "He plays with energy, gives you great offensive rebounding and does the dirty work maybe other guys don't want to do,'' Williams said. "That's why he starts.''
Zanna had six points in an 11-2 burst coming out of the halftime break as Pitt built a 42-29 lead. And when a dunk by Maryland's Jordan Williams (14 points, eight rebounds) cut Pitt's lead to 70-66 with 2:01 left, Zanna made a basket to maintain control.
"He's a guy who wasn't ranked high, but he's good,'' Dixon said of Zanna. "We recruit guys for what they're going to be, not for where they're at.''
Pitt (4-0) had four other double-figures scorers: Gibbs (13 points, seven rebounds), Gilbert Brown (11 points, seven rebounds), Travon Woodall (11) and Wanamaker (10). Cliff Tucker had 17 for the Terps (3-1).
The Panthers were voted the preseason favorite in the Big East, and their trademark toughness was on display in the first half. Maryland made 50 percent of its field-goal attempts compared to only 30 percent for Pitt, but the Terrapins trailed 31-27 at halftime after getting hammered on the boards 26-17, including 11-3 on the offensive glass. For the game, Pitt won the rebounding battle 49-28. "That speaks volumes,'' Dixon said.
Faced with a sudden 13-point deficit in the second half, Maryland went to a fullcourt press and put together a 17-4 run to tie the game at 46 on a three-point play by Berend Weijs with 12:47 to play, but the Panthers never rattled down the stretch. If anything, it was Maryland's Williams who wavered. After the dunk that cut Pitt's lead to four with 2:01 to go, he missed the foul shot that would have made it a one-possession game.
Said Gary Williams, "Jordan was fine. We couldn't get him the ball enough. When they have 6-9 and 6-10 all over him, we did the best we could. This was the No. 4 team in the country.''
