McGhee the latest to step up for hurting Panthers in USF romp

Heroes always seem to emerge from adversity.

In that vein, with injuries plaguing two… Heroes always seem to emerge from adversity.

In that vein, with injuries plaguing two prominent starters, Pitt men’s basketball has become the perfect platform for those buried on the depth chart to make a name for themselves.

Take Gary McGhee. The 6-foot-10 freshman center has barely seen the floor this year, having played in only four contests prior to last night.

With Pitt clinging to a slim one-point lead over South Florida early in the first half last night, however, and starting center DeJuan Blair in foul trouble, McGhee stepped in to give Blair a breather.

But rather than blend into the scene like most rarely utilized reserves do, McGhee announced his presence with an emphatic dunk on the Panthers’ first possession. He followed with a put-back and another layup on consecutive possessions to extend Pitt’s lead in Blair’s absence.

McGhee’s six points and four rebounds may have seemed unimportant in the box score but were immensely valuable to Pitt’s 79-66 victory over the Bulls last night. The Panthers used the momentum created by McGhee’s tough play to continue to build upon a lead that they would never relinquish.

Blair did recover from his early foul troubles to contribute 12 points and nine boards of his own.

The first-year center struggled defensively for much of the night against one of the nation’s best interior players, Kentrell Gransberry. Gransberry used his size advantage to create several second chance opportunities and finished with a game-high 26 points and 12 rebounds.

However, South Florida simply didn’t have enough answers for Pitt’s multiple offensive threats.

Sam Young led the Panthers with 22 points. He continued to show the uncanny range that he has displayed all season. Young connected on 1 of 2 three-point attempts and several long jumpers despite drawing much of the focus of the South Florida defense.

Keith Benjamin, who has experienced a significant increase in playing time since Levance Fields’ injury, also pitched in 20 points on 8 for 12 from the field.

Despite a quiet start, Benjamin got extremely hot late in the first half, stringing together 11 points in only six minutes as Pitt returned to the lockers with a 40-33 advantage.

The Bulls narrowed the Pitt lead to five with just more than 10 minutes remaining in the game, but the resilient Panthers once again pulled away. Blair, Young and Benjamin combined for all but three of Pitt’s 39 second-half points.

Dominique Jones was held to only 13 points.

With the victory, Pitt moves 13-2 overall and 1-1 in the Big East. The Panthers will return to action Saturday afternoon when they host Seton Hall. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.