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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Pitt Beats Rider 95-57 as Foster Scores Record 23 in Debut

Freshman Chase Foster scored 23 points, passing Ricardo Greer's 1997 Pitt freshman debut record, as Pitt beat Rider 95-57 at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh on Monday night in the season opener for both teams.

By Orbit Post2 min read
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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Pitt Beats Rider 95-57 as Foster Scores Record 23 in Debut

Key points

  • Pitt opened its season on Monday night with a 95-57 win over Rider at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh.
  • Foster passed the old Pitt freshman debut record of 21 points, set by Ricardo Greer in 1997.
  • Foster made 7 of 12 shots and 3 of 4 three-pointers, and he added six rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

Pitt opened its season on Monday night with a 95-57 win over Rider at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh. Freshman Chase Foster scored a game-high 23 points and set a program record in his first college game.

A record first game

Foster passed the old Pitt freshman debut record of 21 points, set by Ricardo Greer in 1997. Greer played for Pitt from 1997 to 2001 and came back to the program in April as an associate head coach under Jeff Capel, so he was on the bench the night his record fell.

Foster made 7 of 12 shots and 3 of 4 three-pointers, and he added six rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Jonathan Powell scored 18 points and six rebounds, with six three-pointers. Baye Ndongo and A'lahn Sumler scored 12 points each, and Naithan George finished with eight points and eight assists for Pitt (1-0).

Head coach Jeff Capel told reporters after the game that Pitt shared the ball well, with 21 assists on 32 made field goals, and that the team made 14 of 26 three-pointers.

Pitt runs away early

Rider (0-1) took a 6-2 lead on two straight three-pointers by Bryce Baker, but Sumler answered with a three and Pitt took control with a 19-5 run. Foster hit two straight three-pointers, the second giving Pitt a 21-11 lead with 14:03 left in the first half.

Powell hit a three from the top of the key to push the lead to 39-23 with 3:12 left before halftime. Foster closed the half with a two-handed dunk, and Pitt led 50-26 at the break after a closing 14-3 run.

The Panthers forced 17 turnovers and turned them into a 22-4 edge in points off turnovers. Pitt also outscored Rider 26-0 in fast-break points and committed 10 turnovers of its own. Baker led Rider with 11 points, and Stephen Avegah Semey and Khalil Farmer scored nine points each.

Farmer opened the second half with a three-pointer to cut the lead to 50-29, and Rider got no closer. A 9-0 run built around Powell and Foster pushed the margin to 80-46.

Pitt stays home this week. Buffalo visits the Petersen Events Center on Thursday, Nov. 5, in Pitt's second game of the season.

Foster played 28 minutes in the win. Pitt held Rider to 33 percent shooting for the night, and the size of the win gave Capel room to use the big lineup he described after the game, with Foster moved to the wing next to Ndongo in a group the staff has tested in practice.

Timeline

  1. 1997Ricardo Greer scores 21 points in his Pitt freshman debut, a program record that stands for 29 years.
  2. Nov 2, 2026Pitt beats Rider 95-57 at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, and freshman Chase Foster scores 23 points to break Greer's debut record.
  3. Nov 5, 2026Pitt hosts Buffalo at the Petersen Events Center in its second game of the season.

Sources