Lamar Patterson matched his career high with 16 points, and Talib Zanna had 12 points and 14 rebounds as No. 14 Pittsburgh dumped visiting South Carolina State 69-55 on Saturday.

The pair of sophomores made up for a rare off-shooting night by Ashton Gibbs, who finished with 14 points but went 6-for-18, including 2-for-12 from 3-point range.

The Panthers (10-1) were also without highly touted freshman center Khem Birch, who decided to leave the program, the school announced Friday. Birch, from Montreal, had started the past six games and was contributing 4.4 points and 5.0 rebounds.

Despite his absence, Pitt still dominated the paint and outrebounded the 4-7 Bulldogs by a 38-24 margin. Zanna did his damage off the bench, while Patterson continued his emergence after nearly achieving a triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists last time out against Oklahoma State.

Brandon Riley had a game-high 21 points and Khalif Toombs chipped in 16 for South Carolina State, which was coming off a 30-point loss to Gardner-Webb.

Pitt hadn't played since the 74-68 triumph over Oklahoma State at Madison Square Garden a week ago and didn't come out sharp. A 3-pointer by Riley gave the Bulldogs a 20-18 edge with 6:07 left in the first half. The Panthers responded with a 9-0 run, and Malcolm Gilbert's buzzer-beating dunk gave Pitt a 31-26 halftime edge.

South Carolina State pulled within 35-34 before Pitt took command with a 15-5 burst. The Panthers held Riley to just four points in the second half after he poured in 17 in the first.