Pitt Escapes with Win Over Georgia Tech
PITTSBURGH -- Coming off of an emotional upset victory over Duke, the Pitt Panthers knew they had to do everything in their power to avoid a potential let-down spot against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. In a hard-fought contest that was close throughout, Pitt pulled out a 72-64 win that marked their first winning streak in conference play this season. The Panthers shot 48% from the field and 42.1% from three-point range while Bub Carrington led the way with 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting. On the defensive end, Pitt held the Yellow Jackets to 39.3% shooting and forced nine turnovers in addition to coming away with the advantage on the boards.
Georgia Tech opened the scoring on a Naithan George three-pointer while Pitt went 0-of-5 to start the game. It didn't take long to Pitt to kick it into gear, however, as a pair of dunks and a steal from Zack Austin helped the Panthers capture a 6-5 lead before the first media timeout at the 15:05 mark.
The Yellow Jackets went in front after a Kyle Sturdivant three at the 13:06 mark, though Pitt took the lead right back on a Carrington pull-up three. A 5-of-7 stretch was a catalyst for the Panthers as they carried a 13-11 lead into the second media timeout at the 11:15 mark.
The Yellow Jackets entangled themselves in a scoreless stretch of nearly four minutes, though Pitt's lead was only extended to 16-11 by the end of that run. Hinson's first three-pointer of the game came on a long-range attempt as the shot clock expired at the 8:12 mark before Jaland Lowe followed up with one of his own to make it 22-16 at the third media timeout.
Georgia Tech countered with a 5-0 run out of the break while the Panthers went just under four minutes without a point before Carrington pulled through with a mid-range jumper at the 3:54 mark.
Pitt possessed a 29-23 lead at the final media timeout of the first half as the Yellow Jackets were mired in a 1-of-8 rut and scoring drought of over two minutes. Baye Ndongo and Sturdivant both scored in the closing seconds as Georgia Tech cut it to 31-27 at halftime.
The Panthers' eight first half turnovers stalled their offense at times despite shooting 44.0% and prevented them from taking control of the game despite a stout defensive effort. Pitt held Georgia Tech to 32.3% shooting from the field and 25.0% from behind the arc on a whopping 16 attempts.
Carrington and Hinson went a combined 6-of-11 for 20 points over the first 20 minutes, but the Panthers' bench contributed just two points over that span. Sturdivant led Georgia Tech with 10 points in the half while George put up 7.
The Yellow Jackets tied things up at the 19:08 mark after four quick points from Ndongo before a Kowacie Reeves three put them ahead, forcing Jeff Capel to burn a timeout. Georgia Tech pushed their lead to 40-35 heading into the first media timeout of the half at the 14:44 mark.
The Yellow Jackets made it 43-37 after a vicious reverse slam from Reeves, but Guillermo Diaz Graham and Lowe worked together to tie the game over the following two possessions before a media timeout at the 11:59 mark.
Another triple by Diaz Graham at the 11:15 mark gave the Panthers the lead back as they broke off a 13-2 run that made it 50-45 at the 9:09 mark. A corner three from Deebo Coleman right before the third media timeout cut Georgia Tech's deficit to 50-48 at the 7:37 mark.
Layups from Ishmael Leggett and Lowe put the Panthers up seven at the 5:32 mark, prompting Georgia Tech to make a switch to zone defense in the closing minutes. It didn't present any issues for Carrington, however, as he hit a pull-up jumper that made it 61-54 at the 3:38 mark.
Lowe nailed a three from the corner that extended Pitt's lead to 64-55 before Reeves responded with one of his own at the 2:36 mark. Leggett and George then exchanged threes that made it 67-61 with two minutes left.
Georgia Tech reduced its deficit to 69-64 with 49 seconds left after nailing three free throws in back-to-back trips down the floor. A missed three by George with just under 30 seconds left sent Leggett to the line, where he sealed the deal and finalized another conference win for Pitt.
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