Pitt vs William and Mary Live Feed: Panthers Reach Three-Game Win Streak

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers have a winning record for the first time since the first week of this month after downing William & Mary at the Pete. The schedule starts to heat up after this with Northwestern, NC State and Vanderbilt waiting on the other side of this weekend, but the Panthers are taking a three-game win streak and some confidence into that more difficult stretch.

Game Information

Matchup: Pitt vs. William and Mary
Time: 7:00 P.M. ET
Where: Petersen Events Center
How to Watch: ACC Network Extra and ESPN+
How to Listen: 93.7 The Fan

Live Game Chat

Come chat with our Inside the Panthers team. Stephen Thompson will share their thoughts and news, and any highlights from the game. Tweet at us at @InsidePitt to have your thoughts and reactions shared in the feed.

Stephen: Final - Pitt 80, William & Mary 64.

The Panthers, fueled by a 47-point second half, are above .500 for the first time in three weeks after dominating the Tribe in the second half.

Nike Sibande - 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block - was excellent. So was Jamarius Burton (16 points, 3-5 from 3-point distance) and John Hugley (16 points, seven rebounds, four assists). In each game of this three-game win streak, Pitt has run away from a less-talented opponent after struggling mightily in the first half.

Stephen: Noah Collier fouled out with just under five minutes remaining in this game. He finished the day with four points and four boards. Blake Hinson fouled out as well and picked up a technical on his way out after recording a 16-point, 11-rebound double-double. Pitt leads by 21 at the final media timeout.

Stephen: Call it a breakout game for Nike Sibande, who's shattered his season averages by scoring 13 points on 4-6 shooting from the field to go along with five rebounds and four assists. He's been especially good in transition.

The Panthers have outscored the Tribe 38-16 in the second half and lead 71-53 with 6:54 left to play.

Stephen:

Can't say the individual defense has been much better in this half, but #Pitt's definitely improved their communication and is helping with greater effectiveness on that end.
— stephen thompson (@stephenethom) November 26, 2022

Stephen: Pitt has pushed their lead to 11 at 61-50 with 12:04 to play. The energy has been tremendous on both ends in the second half. They've controlled the boards and limited transition opportunities while defending as a team much more effectively. It makes you wonder why it took them so long to unlock this version of themselves.

Stephen: The Panthers are on an 11-1 run, have made their last seven shots and extended their lead to 54-46 with 13:51 left in the game. They hold their largest lead of the evening as William & Mary calls timeout.

Hugley's been excellent distributing out of the post with double and triple-teams coming his way. His teammates are cutting off of the ball really well in the second half.

Stephen:

Pitt leads 46-45 at the under-16 media timeout. It's the Panthers' fourth lead of the game, and they have not led by more than 3, nor have they scored consecutive baskets with the lead.

Put another way, every time Pitt takes a lead, they can't get a stop to extend the lead.
— Chris Peak (@PantherLair) November 26, 2022

Stephen: Pitt is certainly playing harder on defense but has not been any more successful in the second half. The Tribe is shooting 60% from the floor through the period's first four minutes.

That said, the Panthers are firing on all cylinders on offense. The ball movement is still lacking but they've played through Hugley and it's worked really well because of the way his teammates are cutting off the ball.

Pitt's made five of six attempts from the field in the second half and took a 46-45 at the first media timeout of the period.

Stephen: Halftime - Pitt 33, William & Mary 37.

The defense was ugly and lazy at times but the Panthers picked back up their scoring to make it a four-point game at intermission. Hugley has looked particularly poor on defense and Wright is getting whatever he wants in the post to the tune of 13 points and seven rebounds. Hinson's scored 10 points and grabbed eight boards for the home team.

Pitt is shooting really well but looks unwilling to give the necessary effort on defense. Back door cuts and offensive rebounding have killed them. It's not a matter of ability, which makes it all the more frustrating.

Stephen: Pitt went on a 12-3 run over 2:45 to take a three-point lead with 4:21 to go in the first half and took a 31-29 lead when Nike Sibande knocked down a corner 3-pointer.

They haven't tightened up on defense, but are matching the Tribe blow-for-blow on offense. They have pulled even with William & Mary at 33, all with 3:09 left in the first half.

Stephen: William & Mary is on a 7-0 run over the last 2:19 and leads 26-19 with 7:08 left in the first half. Nelson and Wright have each scored a game-high eight points on combined 7-8 shooting and Dorsey's knocked down a couple of triples. The Tribe is dominating points in the paint 14-2.

Stephen: A 3-pointer from Jorge Diaz-Graham gives Pitt its first lead of the game at 17-14 with 11:36 left in the first half. Dorsey came back with a triple of his own to even things at 17, all heading into the second media timeout.

Both sides shooting better than 50% from distance - the Panthers are 4-5 and the Tribe are 3-6 - and there have been 14 scores on 30 possessions so far. If you took the over, congratulations.

Stephen: Pitt is locked in a track meet with the Tribe right now. Both teams have made their last four shots and William & Mary holds a 14-12 lead at the first media timeout. The visitors have scored eight points in the paint while the Panthers have knocked down three 3-pointers to keep themselves afloat.

Stephen: Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, who played his college ball for the Tribe as a wide receiver, spent some time with the basketball team while they were in town this week.

Thank you to @CoachTomlin and the @steelers for hosting the Tribe. #GoTribe pic.twitter.com/CvhOkim3AI
— William & Mary Tribe Men's Basketball (@WMTribeMBB) November 25, 2022

Stephen: The Panthers will roll with the same starting lineup they've used in their previous two games - Nelly Cummings, Greg Elliot, Jamarius Burton, Blake Hinson and John Hugley.

Collier will start for the Tribe alongside Anders Nelson, Gabe Dorsey, Chris Mullins and Ben Wright. Nelson and Dorsey are your opponents to watch - Nelson is the leading scorer at 11.3 points per game and Dorsey is shooting 51.4% from 3-point distance on more than six attempts per game.

Stephen: It's no secret that Pitt is more talented than the Tribe, but I think the only way this team will walk away satisfied from this game is if they really win handily. It's not just about notching another victory, but looking good while doing it. Sharp execution on either side of the ball is necessary after the Panthers have looked somewhat uneasy at points while getting past Alabama State and Fairleigh Dickinson.

Also of note, former Panther Noah Collier is back in the Pete tonight for the first time since transferring last spring. He's played well since joining William and Mary, averaging 9.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks over 26.3 minutes per game. It'll be interesting to see how he does against a frontcourt he's pretty familiar with.

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