ANOTHER BIG BATTLE
Bubble talk can continue with win vs. Demon Deacons
Entering this week, no men’s basketball team in the Atlantic Coast Conference is hotter than Jeff Capel’s group. Winners of five straight and seven of its last eight, Pitt has gone from the near bottom of the league’s standings to the NCAA tournament bubble. But while the recent success has been a thrill, the Panthers (17-8, 8-6) understand there is plenty of work to be done.
Next up on their task list is a key road battle Tuesday evening against Wake Forest. Similar to Pitt, the Demon Deacons (16-9, 8-6) also find themselves on the bubble. And after coming up short in the first showdown between the two squads, Steve Forbes’ team can ill afford another loss to the Panthers.
Pitt and Wake Forest are scheduled to tip off at 9 p.m. and the contest will be televised on the ACC Network. Here is a closer look at the matchup.
Top storyline
One won’t find a bigger bubble matchup than this one. With less than a month remaining until selection Sunday, Pitt and Wake Forest find themselves in nearly identical positions. Regardless of where one seeks their bracketology analysis, both are widely viewed as teams that are a few big wins away from being on the right side of the bubble.
When it comes to this specific battle, it could be argued that Wake Forest has a bit more on the line. While for now, the Demon Deacons might be ahead of Pitt in the NET rankings and have a more favorable position on the bubble, Forbes’ team is on the verge of a free fall.
As mentioned earlier, Pitt already boasts a victory over Wake Forest, winning 77-72 on Jan. 31 at the Petersen Events Center. The Demon Deacons have gone 3-2 since then, while the Panthers have won fourstraight.
Wake Forest enters Tuesday night having lost its last two contests, road battles at Duke and Virginia. A thirdstraight loss would be a major blow to the Demon Deacons’ tournament hopes, as it would not only result in another drop in their bubble status, but also allow Pitt, a team in a similar spot, to take another major step forward by earning another Quad 1 win.
Key players Will Jeffress:
It is safe to assume Forbes will have a game-plan for Jeffress this time around. Although the stat sheet would suggest it was Bub Carrington, Ishmael Leggett or Blake Hinson that gave Wake Forest the most problems, those who watched the first game between these two teams know that Jeffress was the ultimate difference maker.
For the first 30 minutes, Pitt had no answer for Efton Reid II, who tallied 12 points on 6-for-10 shooting in that span. But when called upon down the stretch, Jeffress all but eliminated Reid from the picture, holding him to only two points in the final 9:46, which came from a jump shot.
With centers Fede Federiko and Guillermo Diaz Graham playing at a much higher level as of late, it will be interesting to see if Capel looks toward Jeffress to once again slow down the Demon Deacons’ top paint presence.
Ishmael Leggett: Of all the big efforts Leggett has had since moving into his role as Pitt’s sixth man, his performance against Wake Forest was his best of the season.
Leggett shot an impressive 9-of-16 from the floor, which included a seasonhigh four triples to help Pitt regain momentum on the offensive end. He was also a force on the glass, hauling in five rebounds, three being offensive boards.
Wake Forest’s bench averages just 10.7 points per game, which ranks third worst in the country. Hunter Sallis leads the ACC in minutes played (35.1) and Cameron Hildreth isn’t far behind ( 33.9). The slim depth in the Demon Deacon backcourt makes Leggett an even bigger weapon than normal.
Behind enemy lines
Head coach: Steve Forbes, fourth year
KenPom ranking: 26 (Pitt: 54)
NET ranking: 40 (Pitt: 47)
Projected starting five ( points, rebounds, assists): Kevin Miller, 6-0, redshirt sophomore (15.4 – 2.8 – 3.8); Cameron Hildreth, 6-4, junior (13.6 – 4.8 – 2.6); Hunter Sallis, 6-5, junior (18.4 – 4.0 – 2.4); Efton Reid II, 7-0, junior (8.8 – 8.3 – 1.2); Andrew Carr, 6-11, senior (13.6 – 6.9 – 1.3).
The scoop
No team in the ACC has been better on its home court this season than Wake Forest, who is a perfect 13- 0. But that stat means very little to the Panthers, who are 6-2 this season in enemy territory.
Pitt, of course, turned its season around with an upset win at Duke on Jan. 20.
The victory in Durham, N. C., marked the Blue Devils’ first home loss since March 5, 2022 — the final regular season game of Mike Krzyzewski’s career.
Its second best win of the season came last week in Charlottesville, Va., which snapped a 23-game home win-streak for the Cavaliers, which was at that time, the longest in the country.
As pointed out by David Teel of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Pitt is the first team to tally road wins against Duke and Virginia in the same season since North Carolina and Florida State did so in 2012. Simply put: Capel’s team is at its best away from home.
In addition to its road mojo, Pitt must also rely upon its defense to get the job done Tuesday evening. The Demon Deacons rank third in the ACC in scoring (79.0 PPG) and fourth in both field goal (46.9%) and 3point percentage (36.8%).
Few players can score the basketball better than Sallis, whose average of 18.4 points per game is fourth best in the conference.
While Wake Forest is going to make tough shots, Pitt can neutralize its scoring capabilities by forcing mistakes. The Demon Deacons committed 15 turnovers in their first encounter with Panthers, which resulted in 14 points.