All-Big East First Teamer, junior guard Ashton Gibbs, has scored a game-best 16 points for No. 1-seeded Pittsburgh Panthers, who lead No. 9 Connecticut Huskies, 41-40, at halftime of a 2011 Big East Tournament quarterfinals contest at Madison Square Garden. Gibbs has netted three 3-pointers, while UConn junior guard Kemba Walker has 13 points on three-of-seven shooting.
Pittsburgh (27-4) used an early 8-0 run to take a 20-8 lead with 13:51 to go in the first half, but behind Walker, who netted 10 points from that point, UConn (23-9) rallied to take a one-point advantage with six second to go. However, Pitt senior guard Brad Wannamaker made a 2-point layup as the first-half came to an end.
Junior forward Nasir Robinson and senior forward Gilbert Brown has each tallied seven points for Pitt, which is currently ranked No. 3 in the country by both polls.
Freshman forward Jeremy Lamb has scored eight points for UConn (ranked No. 21/19 nationally), which beat No. 16 DePaul in the first round, then No. 8 Georgetown in the second round to advance to the quarterfinals.