GREENSBURG, PA- David Palmer (Pittsburgh, 
PA/Westinghouse) recorded a game high 24 points to go along with 12 rebounds and head coach Sean Strickland picked up his first career head coaching victory as the Bobcats ran past Penn State Greater Allegheny (0-4) 80-60 Wednesday evening. Pitt-Greensburg (1-0) has not opened up the season with a win since November 18, 2005 when UPG defeated the Pennsylvania State College of Technology 81-69.
"It's obviously nice to get the season off to a good start." said Strickland "But our main goal remains the same and that is to get better as a team every day."
After falling behind 9-2 early Pitt-Greensburg struggled to stay even with the Lions. Trailing 24-18 with 6:54 remaining in the first half the Bobcats started to dictate the tempo of the game. Finishing the first half on a 14-2 run, taking a 32-24 advantage into the break.
"I really thought that we got better as the game went on. Our goal is to get better in every game and every practice and we definitely improved as the game progressed." UPG opened the second half where they left off in the first, stringing together a 15-4 spurt that capped a 29-6 Bobcat run that covered almost ten minutes.
"Our defensive pressure early in the 2nd half led by Cameron Hubbard set the tone for the remainder of the game." added Strickland "I also liked the way Damian Founds handled the game from the point guard position and our seniors, Josh Kucenic and Larry Bigante stepped up when we needed them."
Josh Kucenic (Lansdale, PA/North Penn) finished the contest with 20 points on 7-12 shooting from the floor. Larry Bigante (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) added 11 points and six rebounds while Nick Persing (Cranberry, PA/Oil City) pitched in with 11 points off the bench.
Palmer who averaged 13.6 points per game and 9.6 rebounds per game last year as a freshman started the 2010-11 season strong. Palmer came out of the gate flying scoring 12 first half points while grabbing 9 first half rebounds, on his way to a 24 point 12 rebound performance.
"David will be one of the premier players in the league (AMCC) this season and it was good to see him start the season strong."
Pitt-Greensburg returns to action this weekend when they travel to Meadville, PA for a two day tournament hosted by Allegheny College. The Bobcats will face the host team Friday night at 8:00 PM and will face Catholic University or Fredonia State University, Saturday at 1:00 or 3:00 PM.