Pitt's Jeff Capel Addresses Defeat to Syracuse

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers suffered another disappointing loss this season, this time an 83-72 defeat to rival Syracuse at the Petersen Events Center.

Much of the same problems the Panthers have had this season kept going vs. the Orange, such as poor defensive play and bad decisions down the stretch.

Pitt is now 0-3 in the ACC, falling to 7-9 overall. It is the fourth time since joining the ACC and the third time in the eight seasons under head coach Jeff Capel that Pitt has lost their first three conference game.

The Panthers now head back on the road, taking on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Jan. 14, where they try and end their losing streak.

Pitt HC Jeff Capel Talks Syracuse Loss

Capel said that he thought the Panthers had good practices, but that it didn't show up in the game, as his team fell behind 13-2 to start the game, much of it coming from turnovers and defense.

The Panthers turned it over 12 times in the loss, giving the Orange 25 points in their road win.

Pitt sophomore guard Brandin "Beebah" Cummings had his best game of the season, scoring 29 points and shooting 11-for-17 from the field, 64.7%, doing so off the bench.

Cummings spoke on his success in the game, how he exploited matchups and also why the Panthers fell short in the end.

Capel addressed Cummings' great play, but is annoyed that all three of his guards haven't played good together in one game.

Fifth year Damarco "Polo" Minor scored just five points, shooting 2-for-8 from the field, while freshman Omari Witherspoon added eight points and shot 2-for-7.

Pitt Panthers Damarco Minor Syracuse Orange — Jan 10, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers guard Damarco Minor (7) goes to the basket against Syracuse Orange guard Nate Kingz (4) during the second half at the Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Even with the struggles in the game, Pitt still was down just seven points out of the final media timeout, but shot 1-for-6 afterwards, allowing Syracuse to hold on for the win.

Capel said that his team had good looks that they missed and didn't deal well with the 2-3 zone that the Orange employed.

Senior guard/forward Barry Dunning Jr. also added just eight points in the loss for the Panthers, missing all four 3-pointers.

Dunning has made just two of his 14 3-point attempts in ACC play, including missing his past seven shots from deep the past two games.

Capel said that Dunning had some good looks, but missed them, and that teams are "trying to run" Dunning off the line.

Senior forward Cameron Corhen played all 40 minutes for Pitt in their loss to Syracuse, scoring nine points and grabbing a team-high eight rebounds.

Capel spoke on the difficulties with little depth, especially in the post, with freshman forward Roman Siulepa in early foul trouble.

He does feel like Corhen can deal with the work load he has right now, but with the lack of available forwards on the team that can play, he "doesn't have an answer for it."

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