Hinson, Carrington Power Pitt in Blowout Win Over West Virginia in Backyard Brawl, 80-63

MORGANTOWN, W.Va — On Wednesday night, Pitt, led by star scorers Blake Hinson and Bub Carrington, took home a dominant victory over rival West Virginia by a score of 80-63.

While the Mountaineers kept things close throughout the first half, Pitt built up a strong lead early in the second frame and blew out West Virginia in the final ten minutes. For the Panthers, Hinson led with 29 points on 9-for-15 shooting from three-point land. Carrington followed with perhaps his strongest performance of the year given the environment, dropping 16 points and nine assists in the win.

The Mountaineers jumped out to an 8-2 lead to start the game, behind four different buckets by four different players, including a two-handed poster slam by Syracuse transfer Jesse Edwards.

However, Pitt narrowed the deficit throughout the half, as eight of its first 16 points came off the hands of the Diaz-Graham twins — Jorge and Guillermo — who both came off the bench.

The broth3rs from beyond the arc 🎯

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— Pitt Basketball (@Pitt_MBB) December 7, 2023

The Panthers regained the lead with over nine minutes to go in the first half, as Hinson hit his third three of the game and Carrington followed with a four-point play, increasing the Panthers’ run to 10-0.

Throughout the rest of the half, Hinson continued to find success behind the three-point arch, hitting a grand total of five threes int he half to finish with 15 points early on. Carrington hit another, and the Panthers finished the frame 9 for 23 (39%) from beyond the three-point arch. However, the Mountaineers kept the pace with a strong interior effort, as Edwards and Iona transfer Quinn Slazinski combined for 24 points and 7 rebounds in the half.

At the break, the Panthers led 36-35, shooting 38% from the field and 39% from three-point range. For the Mountaineers, Slazinski led the way with a dominant 16-point showing in the first half. The Mountaineers scored 16 points in the paint in the first half, grabbed 17 rebounds (to Pitt’s 20), and went 7 for 10 on layups.

Although it took a few minutes, the Panthers woke up once again with a six-point run early in the second half. Hinson hit his seventh of the game, followed by a Guillermo Diaz-Graham three ball to give Pitt a one-point lead with just over 15 minutes to go.

After a technical foul by Edwards with more than 12 minutes remaining, Ishmael Leggett — who only played three minutes in the first half due to foul trouble — scored his seventh and eighth points of the game from the free-throw line. Carrington followed with a fadeaway two, and the Panthers led by ten.

Carrington and the Panthers kept their foot on the gas over the next five minutes, burying the Mountaineers with another 9-0 run that included two buckets by Carrington, a dunk by Guillermo, and a layup from Jaland Lowe — his third bucket of the game on three attempts. Pitt now led 69-52 with more than seven minutes to go.

Down the stretch, Pitt closed out the victory with late buckets from Carrington and Guillermo Diaz-Graham, who added 15 points in the win. Wing William Jeffress also finished with a strong nine rebounds in the win, and the freshman Lowe had six points on 3-for-4 shooting. With the victory, Pitt advanced to 6-3 on the season and 1-0 on the road.

Pitt will now play Canisius on Saturday. Dec. 9 at 6 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center.