Men’s basketball: Panthers return to the Pete to face Rider

Ashton Gibbs calmly scored another 22 points Wednesday night against Duquesne for his ninth… Ashton Gibbs calmly scored another 22 points Wednesday night against Duquesne for his ninth straight game in double digits.

And come Saturday, he’ll look across the court before tip-off and see someone a lot like him: a prolific 3-point shooter.

Gibbs shares the stage with guard Justin Robinson Saturday afternoon, as No. 3 Pitt welcomes the Rider Broncs to the Petersen Events Center at 2 p.m.

Rider (4-3) hails from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, where it leads the conference in 3-point shooting. The Broncs have hit nearly 44 percent of their 3-pointers this season entering last night’s game at Manhattan.

Robinson leads that offensive charge with 16.3 points per game. The senior from London has scorched his opponents from deep all season. He hits 50 percent from the 3-point range, but his best night came in a 77-57 rout at USC when he made all five of his 3-point shots en route to 28 points.

And, like Gibbs, Robinson is known for his free-throw shooting. He had streaks of 26 and 22 in a row last season.

As good as Gibbs has been for the Panthers (8-0) this year, Gary McGhee has been just as lethal in the paint. The center tied a school record with seven blocks in Pitt’s 80-66 win over the Dukes, and he also grabbed 13 rebounds on his way to a double-double before halftime. Duquesne coach Ron Everhart called McGhee the difference in Wednesday’s game.

Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon might have to rely on that rebounding against Rider, whose weakness comes on the glass. The Broncs are eighth in the MAAC in rebounds per game, whereas Pitt is now third in the nation.

“We’re going to have a lot of different guys rebounding. It’s not going to be a one-man show,” Dixon said after Pitt’s win over Duquesne. “We have guards that rebound and a number of big guys that can rebound. The combination of those things can allow us to be a good rebounding team.”

Nasir Robinson had 12 boards against Duquesne, and he said after the game that rebounding comes down to playing tough.

“Being physical is my game,” he said after the game. “It doesn’t matter who we play. I am going to come out and play hard, strong and physical.”

The best rebounder on the Broncs is senior forward Mike Ringgold, who is averaging 6.3 rebounds per game this year. He’s also second on the team behind Robinson with 12.9 points per game.

Despite Rider’s mismatch down low, hot-shooting teams have shown they can hang with the Panthers. Rhode Island stayed within a possession of Pitt until the final minute in the season opener thanks to 14 3-point baskets. The Rams eventually lost the game, 83-75.

“They made some threes, some tough threes and that’s what made the game close,” Dixon said after the victory.

Rider had won four games in a row until it hit a bump last week with losses to Siena and Hofstra. Junior guard Novar Gadson helped spur that winning streak off the bench — he hit 11 of 17 3-pointers to open the season. The 6-foot-7 guard presented a mismatch for opponents, but he has cooled off since his hot start, and so have the Broncs.

Saturday marks the first-ever meeting between Rider and Pitt. The afternoon start comes at a conflicting time for Panther fans, as the football team plays at Cincinnati at noon.