PORTSMOUTH, VA (WTKR)- All eyes of the basketball world were on Churchland High School on Wednesday as the 71st edition of the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament tipped off.
Two games opened the event Wednesday night, with both turning into nail-biters in the second half.
Game one saw K&D Rounds Landscaping hold off Sales Systems, Ltd, 74-73. K&D Rounds opened the game on a 15-0 run, but Sales Systems stormed back and took a 73-72 lead late in the contest. Former Virginia Tech guard Sean Pedulla knocked down two free throws with 12 seconds left to put his team back in front, which eventually served as the game-winners. Pedulla led K&D with 16 points and pulled down six rebounds. Arkansas' Johnell Davis led all scorers with 22 points.
Game two saw Portsmouth Partnership use a big fourth quarter to come back and top Norfolk Sports Club, 101-94. R.J. Felton of East Carolina scored 22 points to pace Portsmouth to the victory. Former VCU and Penn State guard Ace Baldwin posted a double-double, scoring 10 points and dishing out 11 assists. Another former Hokie, David N'Guessan, tallied eight points and six boards to help in the victory.
As for Pedulla, he returned to the commonwealth after wrapping up his college career at Ole Miss. The guard spent the first three seasons of his college career with Tech, averaging 16.4 points per game as a junior.
"It's kind of cool to start your career and then finish it off in a way," Pedulla said of being back in Virginia. "I've really never been in this part of Virginia, but it's really cool to be back in the state."
The losers of Wednesday's games will face off Thursday at 3:15 PM as Sales Systems and Norfolk Sports Club square off. Roger Brown's Restaurant and Portsmouth Sports Club play their first tournament games at 7:00 PM, while Mike Duman Inc. and Jani-King round out day two in the nightcap at 9:00 PM.
VCU guard Joe Bamisile will take the floor tomorrow with Portsmouth Sports Club, as will former UVA forward Kadin Shedrick, who rounded out his career at Texas. Shedrick is suiting up for Roger Brown's. Another former Cavalier, Igor Milicic, is on the Jani-King roster.
All PIT games can be seen live on WGNT.
