Pitt Beats Stanford in ACC Tournament on Last Shot

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers fought back and forth with Stanford in the first round of the ACC Tournament and came out victorious on the last shot.

Panthers fifth year guard Damarco Minor scored off of a second-chance layup and put his team up one point with less than a second left, giving them the No. 15 seed a 64-63 win over the Cardinal.

Minor had delivered heroics for Pitt earlier in the season on an incredible 3-point buzzer beater in the 67-66 win over Ohio State on Nov. 28 and did so once again to play at least one more college basketball game in his long career.

Pitt gets revenge on Stanford, who they lost to 75-67 on Feb. 25, and improves to 2-1 over them since they joined the ACC, defeating them at the Petersen Events Center, 83-68 on Jan. 4, 2025 last season.

The Panthers will face off against the No. 7 NC State Wolfpack on March 11 in the Second Round of the ACC Tournament, with a noon tip-off.

Pitt Finishes Strong, Takes Lead Into Halftime

The Panthers struggled massively from the floor, shooting 2-for-11 and the Cardinal took advantage of this with impressive shooting from 3-point range, making four of their first five 3-pointers to take a 12-5 lead at the 13:27 mark, with redshirt junior guard Ryan Argawal hitting two of them.

Pitt then embarked on an 18-5 run over the next seven minutes, taking a 23-17 lead with 6:10 remaining. They also played great defense, holding Stanford to just 3-for-11 shooting during that time and forcing five turnovers, while scoring eight points off of them.

Sophomore guard Nojus Indrusaitis led the way with five points off a 3-pointer an a layup, while freshmen in forward Roman Siulepa scored four points off two layups and guard Omari Witherspoon converted an and-one off of a turnover on a layup.

The Cardinal tied the game up at 23-23, as they got three baskets from three different players, but the Panthers finished off the half on an 8-0 run over the final 3:17.

Witherspoon made a layup, Siulepa dunked, freshman guard Macari Moore scored a layup off of a turnover he forced and senior guard/forward Barry Dunning Jr. made a layup at the buzzer to get a 31-23 lead at halftime.

The Panthers went without senior forward Cameron Corhen for the final 11-and-a-half minutes and relied mostly on Siulepa during that time as their main post player, a surprising decision, as Corhen plays almost every minute for Pitt.

Pitt Panthers forward Roman Siulepa — Mar 10, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Stanford Cardinal forward Donavin Young (2) and Pittsburgh Panthers forward Roman Siulepa (13) fight for the ball in the first half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Pitt's biggest issue was Indrusaitis bumping knees late in the half, which ended up keeping him out the rest of the game.

Both Teams Battle in the Second Half

Both teams traded four baskets each to begin the second half, with Pitt up 39-32, but then Stanford would go on a 13-2 run, taking a 45-41 lead with 13 minutes remaining.

Stanford freshman guard Ebuka Okorie showed why he was an All-ACC First Team honoree, with two free throws, two layups and a 3-pointer for nine points on the run.

Pitt retook the lead a minute later, as Corhen dunked, and both Witherspoon and Dunning scored layups, then Stanford got it back with a 3-pointer from Argawal and graduate student forard AJ Rohosy scored a layup to make it 50-49 at the 9:32 mark.

Pitt Panthers guard Barry Dunning Jr. — Mar 10, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Stanford Cardinal guard Jeremy Dent-Smith (25) loses the ball to Pittsburgh Panthers guard Barry Dunning Jr. (22) during the first half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Panthers then went on an 8-0 run, with Corhen and Witherspoon making jumpers and both Dunning and Siulepa making layups, putting them up 57-50 with seven minutes remaining.

Stanford stayed in the game with an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to 59-58 at the final media timeout, with Rohosy scoring six points for his team.

The Cardinal extended that run to 10-2, as sophomore forward Donavin Young scored a layup to take a 60-59 lead with 1:40 remaining.

Final Minute of Events

Corhen and Siuelpa missed shots on the next possession, then Witherspoon made the offensive rebound and got the ball to Dunning, who hit a crucial 3-pointer, putting the Panthers up 62-60 with one minute left.

Stanford senior guard Benny Gealer missed a 3-point attempt and Witherspoon got the rebound and went to the foul line, but missed the front end of the one-and-one, giving Stanford another chance following a timeout with 31.2 seconds remaining.

Okorie then came back and drove down the court, scoring on a layup and drawing the foul for the and-one, which he converted to give Stanford the lead, 63-62. That foul also went on Corhen, his fifth and final foul of the game.

Pitt took a timeout with 23.0 seconds left and then fifth year guard Damarco Minor missed the 3-pointer and both teams tried to get the basketball.

Minor got the ball and drove to the basket, missing it, but then put it back in with 0.7 seconds left, giving Pitt a 64-63 lead.

Pitt would then win it, as Siulepa blocked the inbound and the referees determined there was no time remaining.

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