Panthers rout Pitt-Johnstown in exhibition matchup, 95-65

While the Pitt men’s basketball team’s record still sits at 0-0, the Panthers looked ready for regular season play on Saturday.

In Pitt’s only exhibition game of the season, the Panthers crushed the Pitt-Johnstown Mountain Cats, winning by a final score of 95-65 at the Petersen Events Center.

Pitt scored first, as Sheldon Jeter hit one of two free throws to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead. They would never trail.

Senior Jamel Artis, who will start the season as Pitt’s primary ball handler, knocked down two early three-pointers to help the team race out to a 14-2 lead.

After those threes, the Panthers rode the hot hand of redshirt sophomore Cameron Johnson, who filled up the stat sheet in a first half dominated by Pitt.

Johnson hit two threes en route to 13 points, four rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals in the first half.

Jeter dominated on the boards in the first half, snagging six rebounds to go along with five points and two steals in the first period, as well as a pair of dunks.

Artis continued to be strike from beyond the arc in the second half, hitting two more threes to help extend the Panthers’ lead to as much as 21.

A bad spell by Pitt in which Pitt-Johnstown went on a 15-5 run dwindled the Panthers’ advantage to just 59-49 with 10:35 remaining in the game. But Pitt built up a 13-3 run of it’s own, bolstered by two more threes from Artis and one from Johnson to push the lead back to 20.

Artis led Pitt with 20 points, finishing 6-9 from three-point range. Johnson finished with 18 points, six rebounds, six assists, two steals and three blocks.

A.J. Leahey led the Mountain Cats with 20 points and seven rebounds.

Pitt opens the season next Friday at the Petersen Events Center, taking on Eastern Michigan. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.