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Blair paces Pitt to rout of Duquesne

Thu 4th, December 2008

Pittsburgh, PA (Sports Network) - DeJuan Blair had his way in the paint with 14 points and 17 rebounds, including 10 on the offensive end, as the No. 3 Pittsburgh Panthers came away with a 78-51 victory in the 77th meeting with city rival Duquesne.

Sam Young posted a game-high 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field and Jermaine Dixon logged 12 for Pittsburgh (8-0), which has won all eight of its games this season by double digits. Levance Fields had eight points and 11 assists for Pittsburgh.

Damian Saunders had a team-high 15 points, but committed seven of the Dukes' (4-2) 25 turnovers in the loss. Bill Clark added eight points and five boards in defeat.

"I like to think that was us not doing what we were suppose to do. I'm sure Pitt had a lot to do with that," Duquesne head coach Ron Everhart said. "They're a very good basketball team. They're ranked No. 3 for a reason. They executed well, they turned a lot of our turnovers into easy baskets."

The Dukes kept it close in the early going as Pitt missed its first seven three-point attempts. Duquesne's Eric Evans nailed a trifecta with 8 1/2 minutes left in the first half to put the visitors ahead, 18-15.

Defensive pressure helped the Panthers get back in it, as they turned 13 turnovers into 15 points in the opening 20 minutes. Eight straight points, highlighted by Tyrell Biggs' dunk, moved Pitt ahead for good in the latter moments of the half.

Pitt's 36-28 halftime lead ballooned thanks to seven straight points to open the second stanza. The Panthers used their speed and size advantage to take control, as a 10-2 run finished by Gilbert Brown's fastbreak layup made it a 59-38 advantage midway through, and Pitt was never truly challenged the rest of the way.

"I thought we got a little more patient on defense, and with that said we got more turnovers forced," Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon said of the second half. "We strife in being in the right position. It's not something that we had done before. It was something we emphasized at halftime."

Game Notes

Pittsburgh leads the all-time series, 46-31, which includes an eight-game win streak...Pittsburgh has started out 8-0 for the past eight seasons...Pitt is riding a school record 34-game win streak against non-conference opponents at the Petersen Events Center...The Dukes haven't beat a ranked opponent since 1997.