Panthers run win streak to 12
PITTSBURGH – Bench players have been stepping up to provide depth for the No. 16 Panthers, but were asked to raise another notch and fill in for missing starters Saturday night. They answered the call in contributing to Pitt’s 52-38 win over visiting New Hampshire (3-6) at the Petersen Events Center. “We’re very happy to be 12-0,” Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon said. “We try to play tough defense every night and we certainly did tonight.”
Starting point guard Carl Krauser, the team’s leading scorer, was sidelined with a pulled groin and is listed as day-to-day. Starting center Toree Morris was still in Tennessee due to family matters. Freshman point guard Antonio Graves logged his first start and junior Mark McCarroll started his third career game, but first at center.
“Considering the circumstances with Carl not being able to play and Toree out, I was pleased with the way Antonio gave us good minutes and the way all our players stepped up,” Dixon said. “Our defense and rebounding were there, which made up for the offense that was not there.”
Redshirt junior Yuri Demetris also contributed, playing 14 minutes. He voluntarily sat out Pitt’s last game as he was contemplating his future with the team, but has decided to stay on board. He hit his only 3-point attempt and also pulled down 2 rebounds.
“I was happy for Yuri [Demetris] after he hit that 3-pointer,” Dixon said.
In a low-scoring first half, the Panthers started cold, making only 2 of their first 11 shots. New Hampshire was not able to capitalize, however, as the Wildcats were stymied by Pitt’s defense, committing two shot-clock violations in the first 11 minutes. The Panthers lead the Big East in scoring defense.
The score was only 6-6 six minutes into the game. After missing his first three shots, Julius Page heated up and sank consecutive two consecutive 3-pointers and followed a Chris Taft dunk with another basket to fuel a 10-0 run midway through the first half.
Page and Taft combined for seven more points before the half, a Page three-pointer and two Taft baskets to give Pitt a 28-13 halftime lead. Page led all scorers with 19 points.
“We knew Pitt would be one tough son of a gun in scoring defense,” New Hampshire head coach Phil Rowe said. “We tried to make them shoot from the outside and [Julius] Page really stepped up for them tonight and shot the ball well.”
Page only scored six points in Pitt’s last game, which was a 63-56 victory over Florida State five days ago. He credited his offensive outburst as never losing confidence in his shot.
“All shooters know that some nights your shots won’t fall,” Page said. “Tonight, I didn’t do anything differently, but just kept my confidence and my shots were falling.”
The Panthers started out the second half ice-cold from the floor as well. Their defense continued to clamp down on New Hampshire, though, and forced two more shot-clock violations early in the second half.
“They [New Hampshire] had a number of shot-clock violations, which helped since our offense was not where we wanted it to be tonight,” Dixon said.
“Anytime a team loses their starting point guard, adjustments will have to be made.”
Pitt’s lead ballooned over 20 points after Jaron Brown stepped in front of a New Hampshire pass and took it coast to coast to give Pitt a 37-16 lead seven minutes into the second half.
Wildcat head coach Phil Rowe called a timeout nine minutes into the second half after Page hit a three-pointer to push Pitt’s lead to 42-16. Up to that point, the Wildcats only scored 3 points in the half. They responded after freshman Blagoj Janev came off the bench and scored 13 points, as the Wildcats outscored the Panthers 22-10 down the stretch to make the score respectable.
“I was very pleased that we came back in the second half and played a basketball game,” Rowe said. “When you play a team the caliber of a Pitt, especially on the road, just the fact that we competed was a good learning experience for us.”
The Panthers will now face perhaps their toughest test of the season to date when Georgia comes to town Tuesday night with a 7-2 record and riding a three-game win streak. The Bulldogs handed Pittsburgh its first loss of the season last year, a 79-67 manhandling the Panther players have not forgotten.
“We have a lot of bad memories from that game last year,” Page said. “We’ll definitely be ready to play them this year.”