Pitt Vs. Miami Preview: Betting Info, Game Time, TV Channel, Etc.

Pitt men’s basketball returns home to the Petersen Events Center Saturday afternoon after nearly two weeks on the road looking for a much-needed victory against an ACC bottom-dweller in the Miami Hurricanes

PITT’S OUTLOOK

Pitt’s lackluster second half of the season continued on Tuesday, falling to SMU 83-63, which marked eight losses out of the Panthers’ last 10 outings.

The Panthers once again struggled with a poor start as SMU hit five triples on its first seven field goal attempts. In the first 14 minutes of the game, Pitt made just six field goals, while turning the ball over eight times. The Panthers also failed to maintain SMU’s 7-foot-2 freshman center Samet Yiğitoğlu, who scored 17 points and collected 10 rebounds.

Pitt shot a mere 31.8 percent from the floor — the lowest output in conference play this season. That was accompanied by a 25.7 percent (9-of-35) from beyond the arc.

Along with the brutal performance, Pitt’s leading scorer Jaland Lowe left the game and entered concussion protocol. On Thursday, during his radio show, head coach Jeff Capel said his sophomore guard is “most likely out” for Saturday’s matchup against Miami.

Pitt holds a 14-10 overall record and 5-8 mark in ACC play as the Panthers have fallen out of the Next Four Out of the NCAA Tournament bubble, according to Joe Lunardi of ESPN.

MIAMI HURRICANES (6-18, 2-11 ACC)

Head Coach: Bill Courtney (Interim)

HURRICANE REPORT

It has been a tumultuous season for Miami as it saw the program’s longtime head coach, Jim Larrañaga, step down in late December. Following the major development, Miami lost nine-straight games, but has since won two of three.

The Hurricanes defeated Syracuse at home on Tuesday, 91-84, with Matthew Cleveland pouring in 32 points, while Jalil Bethea scored 21 in the victory. The pair combined to hit five triples on a night that the Hurricanes hit 10-of-20 beyond the arc.

Cleveland — a 6-7 senior guard — leads the Canes with 16.8 points per game and leads the ACC with three 30-point performances. He shoots the ball at a 53.8 percent clip from the floor and has knocked down the most threes for Miami with 27. Grad senior Nigel Pack scores 13.9 points per game, while 6-10 center Lynn Kidd adds 10.8 points and leads the Canes with 6.7 rebounds per game.

Although Miami scores at a decent rate with 75.7 points per game — 8th-most in the ACC, the Canes allow the most points amongst high-major schools at 80.1 per game (349 out of 364 D-I teams). Their field-goal defense (49.4%) and 3-point defense (39.2%) rank last in the ACC.

METRICS

Pitt’s matchup with Miami is a Quad 4 game for the Panthers as the Hurricanes rank 216th in the NET Rankings. It is a Quad 1 opportunity for Miami as Pitt ranks 51st overall in the NET.

GAME TIME

Pitt vs. Miami will start at noon est. on ESPN2.

SPREAD

Pitt is favored by 12.5 points, according to Fanduel. Pitt’s moneyline is -900, while Miami is +590 to win straight up. The over/under is hovering around 149.5.

TV

You can find Saturday’s game on ESPN2 with Mike Monaco and Randolph Childress calling the action.

RADIO

Pitt vs. SMU will be live on 93.7 The Fan as well.