Pitt Continues Losing Skid, Falls to NC State

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers continued their recent skid, as they dropped a road contest to NC State, 71-63.

This makes it four straight losses for Pitt, which includes road losses to Notre Dame, 76-72 on Feb. 22 and to No. 19 Louisville, 79-68 on March 1, plus a home defeat to Georgia Tech, 73-67 on Feb. 25. This is the third time Pitt has lost four straight games this season.

The Panthers (16-14 overall, 7-12 ACC) also lose their first game to the Wolfpack (12-18 overall, 5-11 ACC) since Feb. 28, 2021, ending a four-game winning streak over them the past two seasons.

Both teams kept it close early on in the first half, with NC State leading 20-19 with eight minutes remaining.

The Wolfpack then went on an 11-4 run, building a 31-23 lead with less than three minutes left. Senior guards in Breon Pass hit two 3-pointers and Marcus Hill scored a layup, while fellow senior in forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield scored three points on a layup and a free throw.

Pitt would outscore NC State 7-3 to end the first half, cutting the deficit to 34-30.

The Wolfpack came into this game shooting 32.0% from 3-point range, fourth worst in the ACC, but shot 7-for-14 from 3-point range in the first half vs. the Panthers. Pass shot 3-for-5 from behind the arc and graduate student guard Michael O'Connell made two 3-point baskets.

Pitt graduate student guard Ishmael Leggett only played 11 minutes in the first half, picking up two fouls midway and sitting on the bench.

Freshman guard Amsal Delalić scored seven points in his abscence, while fellow freshman guard Brandin "Beebah" Cummings came in as well. Junior forward Cameron Corhen led the Panthers with eight points in the first half.

Pitt missed their first four shots in the second half and NC State had Pass make his fourth 3-pointer and senior guard/forward Dontrez Styles made a layup and an emphatic dunk, going up 41-30.

The Wolfpack maintained their 11 point lead at the 14:48 mark, but sophomore guard Lowe would make two free throws, Leggett hit a 3-pointer and Corhen made two free throws, trimming the deficit to 46-40

Leggett then picked up two fouls in the span of 37 seconds and headed back to the bench with four fouls.

NC State senior forward Ben Middlebrooks hit a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound and made two free throws and Styles made a jumper, while Lowe converted an and-one layup, as the home team led 53-45 at the under-eight media timeout.

Lowe then found Corhen for an alley-oop dunk and made a layup, while Delalić hit a mid-range jumper, making it a one-possesion game at 53-51 wtih six minutes remaining.

Pass scored a layup, but Lowe converted another and-one layup opportunity, cutting it to a one-point deficit with five minutes left.

The Panthers continued their struggles rebouding, as Corhen allowed Middlebrooks to grab the offensive board and then fouled him, as Middlebrooks scored the basket and made the ensuing free throw.

Corhen hit a free throw, Leggett made a 3-pointer and Lowe scored a layup for the Panthers, while Styles made a jumper and O'Connell made a 3-pointer keeping the Wolfpack up 63-60 at the 2:31 mark.

Middlebrooks converted twice from the foul line after Corhen fouled him hard, which the referees reviewed for a more severe call, but kept it the same, increasing the lead to 65-60 for NC State.

Leggett then committed two poor turnovers over the next minute and Lowe missed a 3-pointer.

Senior guard Jayden Taylor then made two free throws with 37 seconds left, putting the home team up 67-60.

Lowe made a layup and a free throw on the next two possessions, but the Wolfpack made four more free throws and held on for the win.

Pitt heads back home and faces Boston College for their final regular season game on March 8 with a tip-off at 6:00 p.m.

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