Panthers fall flat in loss to Michigan
Pitt’s 3-point shooting cools off after halftime in Legends Classic semifinal
NEW YORK — The bright lights and excitement that come from The Big Apple are known to create magic on the hardwood. However, not even the excitement of a hot start against a high-profile opponent was enough for Pitt in its 91-60 loss to Michigan on Wednesday night in a Legends Classic semifinal at the Barclays Center.
A combination of sharp shooting, along with the return of All-ACC center John Hugley IV provided a spark early on for the Panthers (1-2), who led for the first nine minutes of the contest. Yet, as time went on, the Wolverines ( 3- 0) proved why they entered the contest as the favorite.
“I thought we got off to a good start,” coach Jeff Capel said after the loss. “I thought we were right there early, but when adversity hits, the past two games we’ve dropped the rope. That’s where we have to be better. That’s where we have to grow up.”
After sinking three of its first four shots from 3-point range, Pitt cooled drastically from the outside,
ending the night shooting just 30% (6 for 20) from behind the arc. Veteran guard Jamarius Burton was the lone consistent scoring threat for Capel’s team throughout the entire 40 minutes, ending the night with 14 points.
On the defensive end, Pitt had few answers for Michigan’s lethal trio of high-profile freshman Jett Howard, graduate transfer point guard Kobe Bufkin and junior All-American center Hunter Dickinson, who ended the night with 17, 14 and 11 points respectively. After a pedestrian first half, where it led only 38-32 heading into the locker room, Juwan Howard’s squad turned things up a notch in the final 20 minutes, outscoring Pitt, 53-28, in the second half. Joey Baker also had a big night for Michigan off the bench, scoring 14 points.
“There has to be more of a toughness, both mentally and physically,” Capel said. “I’m disappointed in the result. We’ll learn from it, we’ll get better from it. … We have a lot of work to do.”
In his first game back from a knee injury, Hugley showed glimpses of his old self, contributing 9 points, but displayed an equal amount of rust because of his lengthy time away, ending with only one rebound in 22 minutes. Blake Hinson and Greg Elliott also contributed double figures in scoring for Pitt in the loss, finishing with 13 and 12 respectively.
Key stat
Even with Hugley back on the floor, Pitt was noticeably outmatched down low against Michigan. The Wolverines dominated in the front court from start to finish, outscoring Pitt, 38-18, in the paint.
Michigan made the most of its chances, knocking down 17 of its 22 layup attempts. Overall, the Wolverines shot 58% from the field.
Quotable
After his team’s win, Michigan guard Dug McDaniel made a point to note what played the biggest role in his team’s second half dominance against the Panthers — the true-freshman claimed Pitt’s players were simply out of gas.
“We saw how fatigued they were,” McDaniel said. “We took advantage of that. We’re a very fast team. Once we get the rebound and we see that they’re tired, we know we can get easy buckets.”
Up next
The Panthers are back in action Thursday evening, once again at Barclays Center, as they werre scheduled to face the loser of the event’s late game Wednesday night between Arizona State and VCU. The contest will tip off at 7 p.m.