Chapman Gets Patient in Opener : Walkin’ Panthers Take Their Time, Beat Pomona-Pitzer

For a team that’s billed as having a wide-open style, Chapman College did precious little running Saturday night in its season opener.

Instead, the so-called Runnin’ Panthers were reduced to playing half-court, pass-and-pick basketball with Pomona-Pitzer.

It wasn’t a pretty sight.

But after plodding along through the first half, the Panthers managed to pull away from the Sagehens, a Division III team, for a 76-66 victory at the Hutton Sports Center.

Chapman point guard Bryan Richetto changed from playmaker to point-scorer in the second half to lead a 14-4 run that finally gave the Panthers some breathing room. Richetto, a sophomore, made three consecutive jump shots at one point, helping Chapman turn a 48-43 lead into a 62-47 advantage.

“I thought the score was little closer than it should have been in the first half,” said Chapman Coach Kevin Wilson, whose team held a 37-30 lead at the half. “They out-hustled us and out-rebounded us. And they played tough defense.”

The Sagehens (0-1) were also able to exploit Chapman’s most noticeable weakness--the Panthers’ lack of size. Rick Duque and Reed Porter, both 6-foot 5-inch post players, worked well inside, Duque scoring 17 points and Porter 16.

Their rebounding also took the legs out of the Chapman fast break, which disappeared after the first 5 minutes.

Chapman started quickly, outscoring the Sagehens, 10-2, in the first 3 minutes. The lead was extended to 14 points as Mike Minier (18 points) and Russ Ortega (16 points) picked up some easy layups on fast breaks and post plays.

But Chapman wasn’t able to score from the outside, as the Panthers made just 2 of 11 shots from beyond the key.

Minier finished the half with 12 points and Ortega had 8. However, most of their points came during the first 5 minutes when the Panthers built a 20-6 lead.

From there, the lead fluctuated.

Duque scored 4 consecutive points as Pomona-Pitzer pulled pulled to within 6 with 10 minutes remaining.

Then Chapman’s Kevin Stafford came off the bench to sink 3 jump shots--including a 3-pointer--and the Panthers went ahead, 31-19.

Pomona-Pitzer’s David Todd, who finished with 12 points, made 3 of his last 4 shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, as the Sagehens closed the gap to 37-30 at the end of the half.

“I told the kids at halftime to be a little more patient and the offense would come,” Wilson said. “Actually, I thought we played pretty well.”

But not very fast.