Jamie Dixon’s Pitt Panthers have made it a trend the first couple weeks of the Big East Conference season of playing their best basketball away from the Petersen Events Center.
That trend ended Saturday afternoon as the Panthers finally won a conference game at home, defeating a gutsy Connecticut team 69-61.
In typical Pitt (15-4, 3-3) fashion, it was a nail biter as the Panthers blew a 14point lead, only to see the Huskies tie the game at 55 with 4:38 remaining.
But unlike the previous home losses to Cincinnati and Marquette, this time Pitt executed down the stretch.
Senior guard Tray Woodall knocked down a corner three to give the Panthers a 58-55 led, only to see Ryan Boatright tie the game at 58 with a conventional three-point play. But freshman James Robinson rose to the occasion and drilled a corner three of his own to give the Panthers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
U Conn (12-5, 2-3) tried to trim the lead a couple of times, but Pitt senior Dante Taylor stepped up and kept the Panthers on top by knocking down a pair of free-throws and a 15-foot jumper.
“I just want to go out and help us win games,” said Taylor, who also set up Robinson’s big three. “As a senior I know it is my job to bring energy and do whatever it takes. My teammates trusted me to knockdown that shot, so it was nice to be able to pay back their trust.”
The Panthers came out very strong and led 35-22 after the first half. That was due large in part to a great effort at the defensive end of the floor and controlling the glass, which is something Dixon has been preaching.
Pitt held U Conn to only 29.2 percent shooting in the first half, while shooting 48.4 percent on their own during the games opening 20 minutes. In addition, the Panthers outrebounded the Huskies 23-15 in the first half, en route to a 38-27 advantage on the glass for the game, including grabbing 15 offensive rebounds.
“When we rebound well, we tend to play well,” said Dixon. “I thought we defended well and did a good job on the glass, which meant some easy baskets at the offensive end. We are a team that doesn’t turn the ball over a lot, so the better we rebound, the more possessions we get. I thought that showed today.”
Much of the early success at the defensive end of the floor was due to the presence of Steven Adams. The freshman blocked three shots and altered several others in the first half and grabbed seven of his nine rebounds in the first half.
Adams got into foul trouble in the second half and coincidently, the Huskies had more success scoring the basketball, but ultimately Pitt’s hot start to the game, dug U Conn too big of a hole.
“We just can’t spot a team the quality of Pittsburgh 13 points in the first half,” said U Conn head coach Kevin Ollie. “They were more physical than us and they killed us on the boards. I thought we were much better in the second half, but we spotted hem 13 early and that was the difference.”
This was the final regular-season meeting of two of the Big East’s winningest programs, as Pitt and U Conn have combined for 12 regular-season or conference tournament titles over the last dozen years.
Pitt will travel to play Providence on Tuesday night, looking for their third consecutive conference win.
“This win and the way we closed the Villanova game, hopefully gives us some momentum,” said Pitt forward Lamar Patterson, who led the Panthers with 14 points. “We beat ourselves a couple of times this year. We just have to go out and execute.”
In addition to Patterson’s 14, Woodall scored 13 points and dished out six assists, while Robinson chipped in 12.
U Conn’s Boatright led all scorers with 20 and Omar Calhoun also finished in double figures for the Huskies with 14.
Photo Credit: Associated Press
