Penn State and Pitt’s renewed rivalry brought Jalil Bethea back to his hometown

With four minutes to go in the first half, “We are Penn State” chants broke out at the Palestra. The Nittany Lions just capped off a 8-2 run, forcing a Pittsburgh timeout. Two minutes later, those chants turned to “Lets go Pitt” following a thunderous alley-oop on a Panthers’ fastbreak.

The dueling chants provided the soundtrack for Sunday night’s game, where Pitt defeated Penn State, 82-76, in the 150th matchup between the programs. Panthers guard A’lahn Sumler led all scorers with 26 points in 39 minutes. Meanwhile, Dasonte Bowen scored a team-high 17 points for Penn State.

“I remember being a kid and my dad took me to a Pitt-Penn State football game,” said Penn State coach Mike Rhoades. “And the things I heard in the stands, that was an education for me in grade school. I’ll never forget that, and it’s what rivalry should be about. A lot of these people are probably going to work together tomorrow. So that’s what it should be, and it was good fanfare and good for college athletics, college sports, especially with all the craziness in the world.”

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One player in Sunday’s matchup who had prior experience at the Palestra was Pitt guard Jalil Bethea, a former standout at Archbishop Wood. Bethea was a two-time Catholic League MVP and named the Pennsylvania player of the year as a senior. The former five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American originally committed to Miami but struggled to find his footing during his freshman year. After one season, he transferred to Alabama, where a preseason injury limited his minutes.

Bethea, now at his third school, is playing the “sixth man” role for Pitt coach Jeff Capel. In 19 minutes, the 6-foot-5 guard logged seven points and one assist. He also came away with his first win at the storied arena.

“He had never won here,” Capel said. “And I told him we were going to do everything we can to take care of that and change that. And he was a big part of that. He was a big part of that with his drive in the second half.”

Sunday marked the fifth consecutive season that Penn State played at the Palestra. Previously, the Nits had faced Big Ten opponents in the arena. However, because of the Palestra’s 100th year, Penn State and Pitt looked to bring the Keystone State rivalry to West Philadelphia.

The game marked the second straight year that the programs played at a neutral arena after facing off at the Giant Center in Hershey last season.

“We were invited to come down here to celebrate the 100th anniversary … So we decided to do that,” Rhoades said. “So we will play all our games at [the Bryce Jordan Center] this year in the Big Ten, and we’ll come back. Don’t worry, we’ll be back”

Added Capel: “It was an honor for us. When we talked to Penn State about playing, we wanted to try to take it to different places in Pennsylvania, and this is one that I’m pretty sure Mike [Rhoades] felt the same way — that we really wanted to play here, and the fact that it celebrated 100 years was even more special.”

Two games were held at the Palestra on Sunday. At 4 p.m., Temple was routed by Richmond, 79-53. Although both games were played back-to-back, with Penn State-Pitt tipping off at 8 p.m., Sunday was not ticketed as a doubleheader. Following the first game, fans were instructed to exit the arena or head to the box office to purchase tickets for the second matchup.

The late tipoff also seemed to affect the game’s attendance. The official headcount for Penn State-Pitt clocked in at 2,178. Last season, 4,686 fans filed the Palestra to watch the Nittany Lions face Illinois at 7 p.m. on a Saturday. Two seasons ago, Penn State played Indiana in front of 6,126 fans. That game started at noon on a Sunday.

“I wish it was a Saturday game and not a Sunday night at 8 o’clock,” Rhoades said. “I’m not in charge of that.”

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The fans that did show up on Sunday were treated to a back-and-forth affair between two longtime rivals. David Frantz, a 2010 Penn State graduate, said he would prefer his alma mater to schedule a Big Ten opponent at the Palestra, but Pitt was a “close second.”

“I lived in Philly for about four or five years now,” Frantz said. “This was the first time I was ever able to catch them at the Palestra. So knowing its history to college basketball, I’m thrilled that this is an annual tradition for the program.”