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Jaland Lowe scored a team-high 20 points and Pittsburgh took control for good in the final eight minutes to defeat visiting Murray State 83-68 on Friday night.

Pitt used an extended 18-2 run, ending with 14 straight points, to put away a pesky Murray State group that went cold after a decent shooting night. The Racers missed 15 of their final 18 attempts from the floor, including their last eight in a row, as Pitt got away.

Ishmael Leggett and Damian Dunn canned 3-pointers a minute apart to push the lead to double digits — 77-65 with 4:31 to play — for the first time since the first half. The Panthers went on to lead by 16 in the final seconds.

Leggett and Dunn each finished with 19 points for Pitt (2-0), and Cameron Corhen put up 13 points and 10 rebounds. Dunn and Corhen joined Pitt via the transfer portal from Houston and Florida State, respectively.

Terence Harcum led Murray State (1-1) with 15 points. Kylen Milton and Alden Applewhite each scored 11 and JaCobi Wood and KyeRon Lindsay added 10 apiece.

Brandin Cummings’ 3-pointer 8:40 into the game gave Pitt a 25-13 lead. The Panthers were still up by 10 a few minutes later when Murray State pieced together a 9-0 spurt.

The Racers finally drew level on AJ Ferguson’s layup at 5:08, making it 32-all. Ferguson wasn’t done, knocking down a 3-pointer and a fastbreak layup in quick succession for a brief 39-36 lead in the closing minutes.

Lowe responded with a layup and triple, the latter coming with four seconds left to push Pitt up 41-39 at the break.

Nick Ellington, who had seven points, six rebounds and three blocks in Murray State’s season opener, collided with another player in the first minute of the second half and had to be helped off the floor with a lower-body injury. He finished with two points in the loss.

Pitt could not grab a lead larger than six points early in the second half as Murray State kept responding with a steady dose of layups and free throws. Harcum drained two triples 35 seconds apart to give the Racers a 63-62 edge with 9:11 to play before Pitt’s game-ending run.

–Field Level Media