Preview: Pitt Battles Miami Amidst Losing Streak

The Pitt Panthers are on another losing streak and look to bounce back.

Feb 11, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers guard Ishmael Leggett (5) passes the ball by Southern Methodist Mustangs center Samet Yigitoglu (24) during the first half at Moody Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers return home from a two-game road trip with zero wins added to their resume.

After losing to Virginia at home on Feb. 3, arguably Pitt's most disappointing loss this season, they hit the road with a chance at redemption. Four games removed from four-straight losses, they knew they had to avoid that type of losing streak again.

The extra motivation didn't make a difference. Pitt couldn't execute in the clutch and lost to North Carolina, 67-66 on Feb. 8.

Graduate student guard Damian Dunn suffered a fractured elbow in the defeat and head coach Jeff Capel ruled him likely out for the season. Dunn also suffered a thumb injury earlier in the season that required surgery and kept him out for six weeks.

Then, without Dunn, the Panthers traveled to face the SMU Mustnags and couldn't even keep it close in the 83-63 defeat on Feb. 11. Junior forward Guillermo Diaz Graham entered the starting lineup, but the addition wasn't enough to thwart the Panthers' consistent slow starts.

Making matters worse, sophomore guard Jaland Lowe, Pitt's leading scorer with 16.5 points per game, suffered head-to-head contact with SMU redshirt junior guard Boopie Miller early in the second half.

Lowe returned to the game a few minutes later but then left the game for good. Capel said that Lowe will likely miss their next game, as they confirmed he suffered a concussion.

The loss to SMU game served as Pitt's second four-game loss streak of the season. In order to avoid a fifth-straight loss, Pitt has to take down Miami at home on Feb. 15.

The Panthers will almost certainly take on the Hurricanes without Dunn and most likely without Lowe as well.

Preview: Pitt vs Miami

Miami are in the midst of a disaster season. In many ways, they are just trying to escape. It won its first three games, but has gone on losing streaks of seven games and 10 games.

With a 4-8 record earlier in the season,14-year head coach Jim Larranaga stepped down. The veteran head coach cited being unable to "successfully navigate this whole new world," Larranaga said. "My conversations were ridiculous with an agent saying to me, 'Well, you can get involved [with a prospective player] if you're willing to go to $1.1 million,' and that would be the norm."

Larranaga is the sixth veteran head coach in the ACC to step down since April 2021 due to the college basketball landscape not being the same.

This includes Tony Bennett at Virginia, Mike Brey at Notre Dame, Roy Williams at UNC, Mike Krzyzewski at Duke and Jim Boeheim at Syracuse. Leonard Hamilton, in his 23rd season at Florida State, will also step down after this season.

Under Larranaga, the Hurricanes reached the Elite Eight in the 2021-22 season and the first Final Four in school history in the 2022-23 season. They would lose to UConn, who went on to win the national championship.

A long-time assistant, Bill Courtney, who coached at Cornell from 2010-2016, has taken over as Miami head coach for the remainder of the season.

Since Larranga's departure, Miami have only won two additional games — 63-57 against Notre Dame on Feb. 1 and 91-84 over Syracuse on Feb. 11.

Senior guard Matthew Cleveland leads the Hurricanes with 16.8 points and adds 4.3 rebounds per game.

Standing at 6-foot-7, Cleveland was a consensus top-100 player coming out of high school in the Class of 2021. He has eclipsed 30 points three times in the Hurricane's last seven games, including a season-high 32 points against Syracuse.

Cleveland started his collegiate career at Florida State and the Atlanta native has averaged double-digit scoring since. He transferred to Miami after his sophomore season, where he became a full-time starter. He shoots 38% from deep on three attempts per game.

Graduate student guard Nijel Pack is one of the few holdovers from Miami's magical run to the Final Four two seasons ago.

Pack averaged 13.9 points and 4.3 assists per game and is one of the most consistent three-point shooters and scorers in college basketball. He has missed much of the season with a foot injury and hasn't played in over two months.

Without Pack, Courtney has downsized the Hurricanes' lineup to eight key players. Notably, first-year guard Jalil Bethea has started to shine.

Standing at six-foot-five, Bethea was a consensus top-10 player coming out of Philadelphia. He hadn't eclipsed 30 minutes in a game all season until the Hurricanes' last game against the Orange. Bethea recorded 21 points, six rebounds, and four assists over 32 minutes in the win, his fifth game scoring in double digits.

Graduate student center Lynn Kidd leads the Miami front court. Kidd started his collegiate career at Clemson, but trasnferred after one season and spent the next three campagins at Virginia Tech.

Last season was the first Kidd found a major role as a full-time starter. He averaged a career-high 13.2 points in his senior year with the Hokies.

Now, Kidd leads Miami with 6.7 boards and adds 10.8 points per game. He's a very efficient scorer as well, with a team-high field goal percentage of 64.3%.

The only other forward or center who plays over 10 minutes per game is senior forward Brandon Johnson, who spent the last three seasons with East Carolina. The Raleigh, N.C. native has started very game he's played since the start of his sophomore season. In that role at Eastern Carolina, Johnson averaged in the mid-teens in scoring and was an adept three-point shooter.

Now with the Hurricanes, Johnson leads the team with 1.8 assists (considering Pack's absence) and one steal per game. His scoring and efficiency hasn't fully carried over from Eastern Carolina, but his impact on the Hurricanes is certainly felt.

The Hurricanes come to Pittsburgh with an experienced group. Only five of their 13 players are first-years or sophomores. Although the Hurricanes are missing one of their best and most experienced players in Pack, the Panthers are missing a player with a similar description in Dunn.

The Panthers are very likely to make the ACC Tournament, with the top 15 teams making it, but their previous dreams of recieving a bid to the NCAA Tournament have faded as each loss has piled up.

The Hurricanes are trying to string together consecutive wins for the first time since the start of the season and sneak into the ACC Tournament as one of the last seeds.

As the home team, the Panthers are the heavy favorites against the Hurricanes, with ESPN Analytics giving them an 87% chance to win.

But their fortunes have slowly turned downward compared to the beginning of the season. Losses to opponents they likely could've beaten and injuries to key players don't help instill confidence that the Panthers can defend their home court — even if the Hurricanes haven't had a ton of success this season.

How to Watch: Pitt vs Miami

Pitt will host Miami at noon at the Petersen Events Center. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.

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