Saturday night proved to be a gut-wrenching evening for the Grizz Gang faithful as the Oakland men’s basketball team lost in overtime at the University of Pittsburgh, 72-62.

The Golden Grizzlies (1-3) had an opportunity to pull off a monumental upset, leading by as many as 18 points during the game. However, Pitt (4-0) surged back in the second half, tying the game in the final moments of regulation and outscored Oakland 14-4 in the overtime session to complete the comeback.

Head coach Greg Kampe was very disappointed after the game, knowing that Oakland let a huge opportunity slip through their hands.

“This would have been a signature win for these kids for the rest of their lives, and I just feel terrible for them and our fanbase,” Kampe said. “The fans could have beaten their chest and said look at what we’ve done. It is just very disheartening.”

Following two straight road losses at Boise State and Louisiana-Lafayette, Oakland looked well on their way to their first win away from the O’rena. Utilizing a 24-8 run in the first half, Oakland built up a 14 point lead going in to the locker room at halftime.

That 14 point margin set a school record for Pittsburgh, as it proved to be the largest halftime deficit overcome by the Panthers. Pitt forced eight turnovers over the final 3:01 of regulation, aiding their frantic comeback, as they scored seven unanswered points to force overtime.

“We had the game in hand, we played a wonderful game for 37 minutes,” Kampe said. “They didn’t beat us, we gave that thing away.”

Sophomore center Corey Petros led all scorers with 19 points, as well as adding 7 rebounds to the Oakland cause. Junior point guard Duke Mondy scored 14 points before fouling out in the final minute of the contest. Both Mondy and senior forward Drew Valentine were absent from the court during overtime after fouling out during regulation.

Junior guard Travis Bader scored 16, including three three-pointers. With that output, Bader became the 31^st player in Oakland history to reach 1000 career points. Bader has hit double-figures in 18 of his last 19 games.

“I think he has turned out better than anyone thought he would be,” Kampe said. “He has an unbelievable work ethic, he works probably harder than any kid that I’ve ever coached.”

Pitt had won its first three games of the season by an average of 30.7 points, and the Panthers had not trailed by more than three during that span.

Oakland proved to be a tough test on the scoreboard, but was dominated on the glass, being outrebounded by Pitt 42-27. Junior forward J.J. Moore led the Panthers with a double-double 16 points and 10 rebounds.

With the victory, Pitt improved to 95-3 all-time in non-conference games at their home arena, the Petersen Events Center.

Oakland continues their November road trip at Texas Southern on Tuesday at 8 p.m.