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Pittsburgh Panthers vs Gonzaga Bulldogs Cancelled After First Half; Three Takeaways From the Game

By James Fitzgerald

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We really do appreciate what the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces do for us.

If it was not for them, writers like myself would not be able to irritate you in social media with our opinion.

So it is great that they got to share in the opening day basketball festivities and take in a very entertaining game between the No.9 Gonzaga Bulldogs and the Pittsburgh Panthers out of the ACC for the Armed Forces Classic in Okinawa. Japan.

The Marines were treated to a tight back and forth game. They were also treated to a slippery humid game, and through all that slipping and sliding the game was tight at halftime with the Pittsburgh Panthers having the lead at 37-35.

Fortunately for the players, the referees decided to call the game after halftime and this game will not count. This game was treacherous from the opening tip.

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Kyle Wiltjer finished with 15 points in the first half, and Domantas Sabonis added eight points and five boards for Gonzaga.

Michael Young was the high man for Pittsburgh with 11 points and four rebounds with James Robinson and Chris Jones both chipping in seven points.

It was only one half of basketball, and you really could not take away much, but here is what stuck out.

Pittsburgh Point Guard James Robinson is Tough as Nails!

Forget his stat line! Just the fact that James Robinson kept playing after this face plant in the first half shows that he was not making any excuses.

The Marines would have looked at him crazy if he did not finish the game. “Rub some dirt on it youngster!” is what you would have heard.

But Robinson kept playing and performed well in the game.

But you better believe, the only person who face plants harder than this is Ric Flair, but Flair is at least scripted.

Robinson ended up having seven points and two rebounds in the first half, but this fall is a big reason why the game was called.

Kyle Wiltjer Found his Footing in the “Player of the Year” Talks

Kyle Wiltjer was able to keep his footing enough during this game to finish with 15 points in the first half.

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    • The 6-foot-10 swingman found his stroke early and often hitting 5 of 8 shots from the floor including 3 of 6 from three-point land.

    Just observing him early, it appears that his offense is ready for the next level without a doubt.

    He can play the swing or maybe even get strong enough to be a solid stretch-four.

    The thing that is going to be an issue for him is perimeter defense because he is not fleet of foot.

    It is a shame that this game did not get finished. He looked like he was on the verge of a 30 point night.

    The Wisdom of the Referees Shined Through

    We should really be thankful that the “zebras” were wise enough to stop this game.

    They understood that both of these teams have NCAA Tournament hopes and did not need them dashed because of prolonged exposure to the basketball court suited for “The Ice Capades”.

    After James Robinson face planted there was easily about six other plays where other players slipped and fell.

    The conditions were completely horrible! According to the broadcast, it had been raining in Japan which means it was humid and warm.

    They had fans blowing in the gym because of how much heat built up when everyone finally packed themselves inside for the game.

    Thank God no one blew out a knee or this would have a different kind of tone toward the referees.