Pittsburgh, PA- Jaland Lowe scored 18 points and four of the Panthers five starters scored in double digits as Pittsburgh (14-6 overall 5-4 in conference) won their second straight game holding off North Carolina for a 73-65 win on Tuesday at the Petersen Events Center.
Pitt leads the ACC in free throw percentage (.786), while ranking third in effective field goal percentage (.545), and field goal percentage (.472). The Panthers also rank fourth in the conference in scoring (80.2 ppg.) and three-point field goals per game (8.6 3pg.). The Panthers’ starting backcourt of Ishmael Leggett and Jaland Lowe combined to average 34.2 points, 9.8 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 3.5 steals per game. The duo has combined for 32 double-figure scoring games, including 13 games with 20 or more points scored.
BY THE NUMBERS
● Pitt is one of two programs (joined by Rutgers) in the NCAA with two guards averaging 16.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game or better.
● Pitt is the only program with two players ranked in the top 10 in scoring. ● The Panthers have allowed 10 or more made three-pointers in four of the past five games. ACC opponents averaged 9.8 threes per game with Pitt being outscored by 48 points from three-point distance through eight league contests. ● Pitt leads the ACC and ranks 13th in the NCAA in free throw percentage (.786). The Panthers are 82-of-98 (.837) from the stripe over the past six games. ● The Panthers have been outrebounded by a combined 58 boards in their six losses this season.
UNC is now 10-8 all-time vs Pittsburgh. Today was the first of two games in a 12 day span between these teams. Pittsburgh goes to Chapel Hill on Saturday Feb 8th.
RJ Davis scored 16 points to pace the Tar Heels (13-9 overall, 6-4 in conference) in the loss. They led by 10 late in the first half and by seven early in the second, when it looked like they just might seize control. Late in the first half, an 8-0 run the Tar Heels surrendered followed by another 8-0 run the Tarheels gave up after it steadied itself after halftime. In the final minutes UNC went more than three minutes without a point, missing 10 of their final 11 attempts from the field and allowed the Panthers to score the final nine points, which were part of a larger 14-2 run over the final five-plus minutes.
Pittsburgh shot 80% from the charity stripe to 66.7% to North Carolina. North Carolina shot 44.1% from the field to the Panthers 43.6%. Pittsburgh shot 34.6% from 3 pt range to 29.2% for the Tar Heels. The Tar Heels outrebounded the Panthers 38-28 with North Carolina grabbing 28 defensive rebounds. North Carolina had 15 assists to Pittsburgh’s 12. Pittsburgh had 8 steals and 9 blocks. North Carolina turned over the ball 14 times leading to 22 Pittsburgh points.
The largest lead was 10 for North Carolina and 8 for Pittsburgh. North Carolina scored 34 points in the paint to 24 for Pittsburgh.
Takeaways:
1. The Tar Heels NCAA Tournament resume took a major blow.
2. The late-game meltdowns have been one of UNC’s only constants this season. 3. With Duke looming, the margin of error is non-existent.
Up next
UNC travels down Tobacco Road to Cameron Indoor to face Duke on Saturday. Pittsburgh stays in the Tarheel State traveling to Winston Salem to face Wake Forest.
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