Khem Birch enjoyed the best game of his young career with 15 points and 10 rebounds as No. 6 Pittsburgh downed Penn 78-58 on Friday.

Preseason Big East Player of the Year selection Ashton Gibbs added a team-high 16 points for the Panthers (4-1), who won in their first game in the historic Philadelphia-based Palestra in 25 years.

A highly-touted true freshman for Quebec, Birch had played no more than 17 minutes in Pittsburgh’s first four games as coach Jamie Dixon acclimated his 6-foot-9 forward to the speed of the college game. Birch added three blocked shots and shot 6 of 8 from the field.

Pitt never trailed in this contest, going to Birch early and often as he and sophomore forward J.J. Taylor stepped in for regular starters Dante Taylor and Lamar Patterson and dominated the undersized Quakers (3-3).

The Panthers struggled to pull away and did not take a double-digit lead until early in the second.

Gibbs hit a 3-pointer to make it 56-45 midway through the second half and Pitt had no problem stretching the advantage from that point forward.
Two-time Ivy League Player of the Week Zach Rosen led all scorers with 22 points.