Pitt Falls Short in Defeat to No. 4 Duke

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers battled with No. 4 Duke throughout their matchup at the Petersen Events Center, but couldn't compete late on and suffered a 70-54 defeat.

It represents the fourth straight defeat for Pitt, as they fell 86-67 at home to SMU on Feb. 7, 67-47to then Virginia on Feb. 3 and 63-52 to then ranked No. 22 Clemson on Jan. 31, both of the road.

Pitt falls to 9-16 overall, 7-9 at home and 2-10 in the ACC, with this their fourth straight loss and seventh loss in their past eight games. Duke improves to 22-2 overall, 8-1 on the road and 11-1 in the ACC.

The Panthers fall to 9-19 all-time vs. the Blue Devils, 3-12 in the ACC since joining ahead of the 2013-14 season, six losses in the past seven meetings and 2-6 at the Petersen Events Center.

Pitt Sticks With Duke in First Half

The Panthers came out the better of the two teams, taking a 9-4 lead that forced Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer to take a timeout at the 17:08 mark.

Pitt senior forward Cameron Corhen made a short jumper, freshman forward Roman Siulepa hit a 3-pointer and senior guard/forward Barry Dunning Jr. made a tough shot at the basket and then an emphatic, fast break dunk off a steal to force the timeout.

Siulepa got the Panthers up as big as 12-6 after a 3-pointer, but the Blue Devils got the lead back off an 11-3 run, 15-12 with 12 minutes remaining. Sophomore guard/forward Isaiah Evans led the road team with a 3-pointer and a mid-range jumper, while freshmen in forward Cameron Boozer and guard/forward Nikolas Khamenia each made a layup.

Pitt kept the game close, and continued relying on their 3-point shooting, as they struggled with penetrating the paint against Duke's stingy defense. Duke, in turn, shoot poorly from deep and relied on shots in the paint.

Siulepa and fifth year guard Damarco Minor hit 3-pointers, while freshman guard Omari Witherspoon made a layup for the Panthers, who combatted two layups from Blue Devils guards in freshman Cayden Boozer and a jumper from junior Caleb Foster to lead 21-20 at the 8:34 mark.

Pitt Panthers forward Roman Siulepa — Feb 10, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers forward Roman Siulepa (13) reacts after making a three-point basket against the Duke Blue Devils during the first half at Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Foster and Cameron Boozer gave Duke the lead back on seven combined points, but then Dunning eventually got it back to Pitt after making three 3-pointers over two minutes, 29-28 with 2:35 remaining.

The Blue Devils took advantage of the Panthers missing their final four shots, as Cayden Boozer made a jumper, Foster got a layup and sophomore guard/forward Darren Harris hit from behind the arc, putting the road team up 35-29 at halftime.

Dunnning led Pitt with 13 points and Siulepa had nine points, with both players making three 3-pointers in the period. Cameron Boozer led Duke with eight points, one of seven different scorers in the first half.

Duke Pulls Away in Second Half

The Panthers continued their shooting struggles into the second half, as they missed their first four shots and didn't score until Corhen made a layup four minutes in.

Duke extended their lead to 11 points, 40-29, as Harris made a layup and Cameron Boozer hit from 3-point range.

Pitt got it within seven points a few times in the first 10 minutes, as Siulepa made a 3-pointer, sophomore guard Nojus Indrusaitis dunked, and both Corhen and Dunning made layups, but Duke finally started to find success frombehind the arc.

The Blue Devils, who shot 2-for-13 from deep in the first half, started to make some 3-pointers, with Evans making three 3-pointers, plus a layup for eight points, while freshman guard/forward Dame Sarr made a 3-pointer himself, as the road team led 56-42 with 6:21 remaining.

Pitt stayed in the game, with Siulepa making a layup and then converting an and-one opportunity off a layup, Minor hiting a 3-pointer and Dunning scoring a layup on the fast break, but still couldn't get it close to Duke.

Cameron Boozer converted an and-one opportunity off a layup, Foster made a layup and a 3-pointer and Evans hit from deep for his fourth 3-pointer of the game, as the Blue Devils led 67-50 with 2:48 remaining, sealing the win for the road team.

Feb 10, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer (12) handles the ball against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the first half at Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Players of the Game

Evans was sensational for the Blue Devils, leading the way with 21 points, shooting 8-for-10 from the field and 5-for-6 from 3-point range.

Cameron Boozer also had another strong performance for Duke, scoring 17 points and making six of his nine field goals, as he competes for National Player of the Year awards.

Duke won in the paint, outscoring Pitt 36-22 and outrebounding them 37-23 in the victory.

Siulepa battled with Cameron Boozer throughout and scored 19 points in the defeat for Pitt, making four 3-pointers.

Dunning also had a solid night for Pitt, mostly in the first half, scoring 17 points and shooting 7-for-14 from the field.

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