By John Ostapowicz / The Jambar
With the start of the 2025-26 campaign, the Youngstown State University men’s basketball team headed to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to face the University of Pittsburgh on Nov. 3 at the Petersen Events Center. Despite a strong effort both defensively and offensively, the Penguins fell 74-59 to the Panthers.
Against the Power Four conference opponent, the Penguins started hot in their season opener. The team led 14-6 at the 14:31 minute mark of the first half, but the Panthers were able to take their first lead of the night at 20-19, with the help of senior Cameron Corhen.
Corhen led the game with a match high of 23 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.
For Youngstown State, its returners from the Horizon League Championship appearance helped with the scoring efforts. Senior Cris Carrol recorded 18 points on 7-of-12 from the field to go along with three 3-pointers, while redshirt senior Jason Nelson added 15 points and went 5-of-9.
Offensively, Youngstown State went 22-of-56 from the field, 10-for-33 from 3-point range and 5-for-9 at the free-throw line. Panthers Head Coach Jeff Capel said he based the team’s gameplan on Youngstown State’s scrimmage against the University of Akron, as the Penguins attempted over 30 3-pointers in the contest.
“We knew that [YSU is] a team that [averages] 30 3-point attempts a game,” Capel said. “In their exhibition against Akron, we saw the box score — they took 31 [3-pointers], so we saw that as a point of emphasis.”
In rebounding, Youngstown State was out rebounded by Pitt, 46-24. The Panthers grabbed 17 offensive rebounds and 18 turnovers from the Penguins on nine steals.
After the game, Head Coach Ethan Faulkner said despite the team’s miscues and offensive rebounding, it performed well against a stronger and more physical Panthers team.
“Our team will learn from this,” Faulkner said. “I like our team, [and] we got a chance to be a pretty good team, but we’ve got things we got to get cleaned up and get better at, and we’ll do that as we progress throughout the year.”
The program’s transfers played a crucial role in the game. Sixth-year senior Cam Polak, who transferred in from California University of Pennsylvania, and redshirt junior Rich Rolf, who transferred in from the Univeristy of North Carolina at Charlotte, combinded for 15 points and seven rebounds.
With Polak growing up near Pittsburgh in West Homestead, Pennsylvania, he said it was a positive experience to return home and have the opportunity to play at the Division I level.
“It was cool, it really was. There’s a lot of people still here waiting for me, but it was a good experience, especially coming from Division II up to this,” Polak said.
Youngstown State is back in action against Grand Canyon University at 9 p.m. Nov. 7. The game will be available on the MountainWest Sports Network and 570 WKBN.