Five Takeaways: Pitt Withstands Wake Forest’s Adjustments in Important Win

PITTSBURGH — Despite a valiant comeback effort from Wake Forest on Wednesday night, Pitt overcame some costly mistakes and escaped with the win to improve to 14-7 (7-3 ACC).

Wake Forest, who came in with a 14-6 (6-3 ACC) record, fought through Pitt’s hard shooting and kept up with the Panthers by scoring 34 points in the paint and hitting some timely jumpers. On the defensive end, Steve Forbes threw different looks at Pitt all game, including a 1-3-1 defense that caused some confusion on Pitt’s end early on.

“The 1-3-1 got us a little bit off-balance,” Pitt head coach Jeff Capel said. “I thought we were in a really good rhythm, and they went to that. It got us a little off balance.”

Hinson, Elliott Lead Three-Point Barrage as Pitt Survives Wake Forest, Wins 81-79

“We can’t come out and defend like that in the first half,” Wake Forest head coach Steve Forbes said. “That’s on me. I just don’t think we played hard enough. They did a really good job of getting the ball quick out of the ball screen and getting across the midline. We were doing a poor job — our guards did a really poor job — of guarding the tag, tagging the roller, and getting back out. You’ve got to do both. Either we weren’t there, or we were there, and they drove around us.”

However, Pitt overcame the suffocating defense and managed to find open looks in the wings and the corners with penetration from its guards and efficient ball movement. Greg Elliott and Blake Hinson were hot from the start, and even when the Deacons switched to the zone, they continued to find open looks and knock them down.

“But even in that, at times, we got really good looks in it,” Capel continued about the 1-3-1. “At times, we had some wide-open threes that we just missed. I thought when we penetrated the zone and we didn’t just stand out, I thought we did a very good job of attacking it.”

Capel also said after the game that Wednesday night’s performance was “probably” the best ball movement he has seen from his team.

“We moved it really well when we played at Northwestern,” he added. “This is by far the best we’ve shot the ball in here [Petersen Events Center], and we needed every one of them.”

SHARING THE BALL

Capel and his team have preached it all year: get energy behind the ball, and good things will follow.

The team dished out an impressive 22 assists, tying its season high. Eight different players scored for the Panthers, led by Hinson’s 24 and Elliott’s 18. Federiko Federiko only took one shot: a massive layup off an offensive rebound in the final minute to give the Panthers the lead.

Overall, Nelly Cummings and Jamarius Burton did a good job of not forcing anything offensively despite some turnovers from each of them. The two guards set up their teammates well all night, combining for 15 assists between the two of them.

Pittsburgh Panthers guard Jamarius Burton (11) January 25, 2023 David Hague/PSN

RECORD-SETTING FROM DEEP

The Panthers moved the ball around the perimeter with force on Wednesday night. When possessions seemed dead, the guards would drive and kick. Simple. Not easy, but simple. The penetration of the team’s guards drew Deacon defenders inside, especially when they were in their 1-3-1 zone, and allowed for open threes from the sharp shooters of the night.

The result? A program record in three pointers made with 18, as well as a tied program record by Hinson himself for individual threes made with 8.

“The ball can move,” Hinson said after the win. “We find the best shot. It doesn’t always gotta be a layup, and we’re skilled enough to make those shots. Thank God they went in, and we put the work in to make those shots.”

In addition to Hinson and Elliott, Nelly Cummings also hit three threes on the night after struggling to see the ball go through the basket in recent games.

BENCH PLAYERS BUYING/SETTLING IN

It’s not easy to come off the bench in a high-intensity college hoops matchup, but Pitt’s reserves each seemed to contribute in their own respective ways in Wednesday night’s victory over the Demon Deacons.

The two teams tied in the bench points category of the stat sheet, with each team’s reserves scoring 20 points. With a starting five like Pitt’s that believes it can go up against any five in the league, bench production at that level is going to be a massive boost throughout the entire season.

Nike Sibande, the team’s sixth man, hit three of his eight shots and all four of his free throws to finish with 11 points. In addition, he grabbed four big rebounds, dished out two assists, and grabbed a steal.

Nate Santos, who has struggled to shoot the ball but has made an impact on the glass and in other facets of the game, came in for three minutes. In that span, he went 1 for 3 from the field, throwing down a two-handed dunk after his baseline cut was rewarded with a dish from Jamarius Burton.

Pittsburgh Panthers forward Guillermo Diaz Graham (25) January 25, 2023 David Hague/PSN

Guillermo Diaz-Graham, the team’s first forward off the bench as of late, contributed five points and grabbed two offensive boards in the win. His twin, Jorge, came off the bench as well, playing four minutes, hitting both of his free-throw tries, blocking a shot, and drawing a charging foul.

“We need those guys, and we need their energy,” Capel said about the team’s bench pieces. “That necessarily may not mean scoring, but I thought they did some good things defensively. Obviously, they all scored. I thought Jorge came out, gave us some really big minutes. Took a big-time charge. We need everyone. We need everyone to come in and give great energy when they come in the game, and those guys did that.”

WIN SETS UP MASSIVE OPPORTUNITY ON SATURDAY

With the win, Pitt moved to 7-3 in ACC play.

Before Wednesday, Pitt was still in the conversation for an NCAA Tournament berth according to most bracketologists. However, with potential back-to-back wins over Wake Forest and No. 20 Miami, the Panthers can cement themselves into that conversation heading into their game at North Carolina on Feb. 1.

The Panthers are currently tied for third place in the conference with the Hurricanes (16-4 overall) and the Tar Heels (15-6 overall).

Saturday’s game against No. 20 Miami will tip off at 4 p.m. on ESPNU live from the Petersen Events Center.