The Pitt men’s basketball non-conference schedule is, at last, complete.
The Panthers have added a game against Northern Illinois Saturday at Petersen Events Center, an agreement that was announced four days before the matchup is set to take place in a pandemic-altered season. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. A television designation was not specified.
The game will be Pitt’s fifth and final contest outside of ACC play. The two teams played last season, with the Panthers emerging with a 59-50 victory in a game in which they trailed by as many as seven in the final 10 minutes before Northern Illinois went scoreless for the final 6:34.
The Huskies lost their top two scorers from that team, most notably guard Eugene German, who averaged 20.5 points per game last season and scored 18 points in the loss at Pitt. The Panthers, too, lost their top scorer from that game in guard Trey McGowens, who helped lead his team to a win with 18 points. Following last season, McGowens transferred, ultimately ending up at Nebraska.
Northern Illinois was picked to finish 10th in the 12-team Mid-American Conference entering the season. It lost its first and only game this season, 65-61, against Illinois-Chicago and is currently ranked 235th (of 357 Division I teams) by KenPom.com, placing it one spot behind Robert Morris.
Pitt split its first two games of the season, suffering a shocking setback against Saint Francis (Pa.), 80-70, before rebounding with an 83-74 victory three days later against Drexel.
Craig Meyer: cmeyer@post-gazette.com and Twitter @CraigMeyerPG
First Published: December 1, 2020, 9:56 p.m.
