The Pittsburgh Panthers (17-9, 6-6) defeated No. 12 North Carolina (18-7, 8-4) in an 89-76 upset Saturday at the Peterson Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Sophomore forward Sheldon Jeter led the court with 22 points. Also scoring for the Panthers were redshirt senior guard Cameron Wright with 15 points and 10 assists, junior guard James Robinson with 12 points and eight assists, sophomore forward Michael Young with 13 points, sophomore forward Jamel Artis with 11 points and five assists, and redshirt sophomore forward Chris Jones with 10 points and six assists. Senior forward Derrick Randall added six points.
Pitt tied the school record for team assist-to-turnover ratio with 30 total team assists and five turnovers. 30 assists ranks as the third-highest total in the Jamie Dixon Era and ties for the tenth highest in school history.
The Tar Heels’ junior forward Brice Johnson led his team with 19 points.
“We shot it well and that makes a lot of things work a lot better so that was good to see,” head coach Jamie Dixon said of his team’s performance. “The passing was where it started. The unselfishness, 30 assists, five turnovers. It was really a great performance against a very good team.”
The Panthers have now won four of its last five games. Saturday’s win marks the second time Pitt has defeated UNC this year. The Panthers improved to 3-8 all-time against the Tar Heels.
Jeter contributed his team’s toughness to the upset win.
“I felt like we had a lot to prove,” Jeter said. “Our toughness and our manhood got questioned after the Louisville game. I think tonight we went out there and we showed just how much of a man we are.”
UNC was 49.2 percent from the field under the Panthers’ zone defense.
Robinson agreed that his team passed the ball well against the Tar Heels’ defense. Pitt was 64.9 percent from the field.
“It [ball movement] was a really big emphasis coming in,” Robinson said. “We knew [North Carolina] plays aggressive defense. We just tried to attack the open gaps in their defense. When guys are hitting shots, it really comes down to passing the ball. That’s what we did and we were able to knock them down.”
Dixon said his team is already preparing for their Monday night matchup against Virginia.
“We already have shifted the focus,” Dixon said. “We are moving on to Virginia. We are getting ready for them and have had some big wins so this shouldn’t linger too long. We have to go and get ready to play well.”
Despite accrediting nine missed UNC free throws to the Oakland Zoo, according to Jeter, the Pitt student section also paid condolences to former UNC head coach and “coaching legend” (Basketball Hall of Fame) Dean Smith, who died on February 7.
“That was a pretty neat thing the Oakland Zoo did out there—they gave me a signed card with their condolences for the loss of Coach (Dean) Smith,” UNC head coach Roy Williams said. “College athletics aren’t all that bad and I told those kids I would keep all of them, they will never be tossed.”
Pitt faces Virginia Monday night at 7:00 pm ET at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va.
