Senior Aron Phillips-Nwankwo walked off the Petersen Events Center for the final time with his hands on top of his head. His Pitt Panthers career was over as the team fell 60-54 to George Washington in the first round of the NIT Tuesday. “I know we’re a better team than we played, this is how we performed," Panthers coach Jamie Dixon said. "We had good practices and the guys were excited about playing. Some of the decisions we made tonight are not what we normally do. The free throws wore ... Read More
Panthers tournament hopes cut by Barber, NC State
The Pitt Panthers knew its task was monumental in order to get back into the NCAA Tournament conversation, but the journey ended before it could start. The 81-70 loss to NC State Wednesday night in the second round of the ACC Tournament. Now despite what many people call Jamie Dixon's best coaching job, the Panthers will be NIT bound. NC State [20-12] dominated the first half, and Anthony 'Cat' Barber in particular created separation from the Panthers [19-14]. Barber scored 21 points in ... Read More
Pitt falls on senior night
The Pitt Panthers did not want to disappoint Cameron Wright, Derrick Randall and Aron Phillips-Nwankwo with a loss in their final home game and also wanted to strengthen its NCAA Tournament resume. Instead, the Panthers (20-11) came away with a 67-63 loss against the Miami Hurricanes (18-12) Wednesday night. Sophomore forward Michael Young had 20 points and seven rebounds for the Panthers. Sophomore forward Jamel Artis scored 11 points and Wright contributed. 11 points and five ... Read More
Pitt preparing for tough guantlet of ACC games
After putting up back-to-back ACC victories to move to 3-2 in the conference, Jamie Dixon’s Pitt Panthers are about to find out how difficult conference play can be beginning Monday night. Beginning with a trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium to take on No. 4 Duke, the remainder of the Panthers schedule shapes up as a very tough gauntlet for a young team to run. Needless to say, if Pitt doesn’t win some big games during this upcoming stretch, there’s a good chance that they won’t be dancing come ... Read More
Pitt gets defensive in win vs. Georgia Tech
Jamel Artis scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half and the Pitt Panthers held Georgia Tech scoreless for a five-minute stretch late in the game as Pitt squeaked out a 70-65 victory Saturday afternoon, improving to 3-2 in the ACC. In a game where each possession was a grind, Pitt (13-5, 3-2 ACC) held the Yellow Jackets to just 40 percent shooting on the afternoon, while getting just enough offense of their own to get by. “We did a lot of good things,” said Jamie Dixon. “We have some ... Read More
Pitt outworked in loss to Clemson
Scoring droughts have become a staple of this year’s Pitt Panthers team and a pair of another very lengthy droughts cost the Panthers in a big way Saturday afternoon against the visiting Clemson Tigers. Pitt went a 12-minute span in the first half and a five-minute span in the second half, only making one field goal and the Panthers couldn’t recover from it as they dropped a 71-62 battle to Clemson, their first ACC home game of the season. “This one is very disappointing,” said Pitt head ... Read More
Pitt extends win streak to six with win over Florida Gulf Coast
Two years ago, the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles were the darlings of the NCAA Tournament. Tuesday night, Jamie Dixon’s Pitt Panthers made sure that they wouldn’t become the Eagles next upset victim. The Panthers used a balanced offensive attack and cruised to a sixth consecutive victory, defeating a very sloppy Florida Gulf Coast team 71-54 for Pitt’s 200th win all-time at the Petersen Events Center. The win was the second convincing one in a row for the Panthers, who begin ACC play on Saturday ... Read More
Cameron Wright’s return has Pitt heading in right direction
The Pitt Panthers basketball team returned home from an up-and-down month away from Pittsburgh and quickly have seen the fortunes change. Much of that has to do with the return of senior guard Cameron Wright, who finally looked like himself Wednesday night, scoring 14 points in 34 minutes of action in his third game back recovering from a foot injury. That was a big leap forward for Wright, who had scored only one point in his prior two games, playing a total of 22 minutes. Wednesday against ... Read More
Jamel Artis’ big night leads Pitt past Manhattan
For Jamie Dixon’s Pitt Panthers, there’s no place like home. Jamel Artis put together a complete performance, scoring a career-high 20 points, grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out five assists, as Pitt defeated Manhattan 65-56 Wednesday night at the Petersen Events Center. The win was Pitt’s third in a row and the second game in the past four days that Pitt (7-3) has gotten to play on its home floor, after going nearly a month on the road, playing six games without a home ... Read More
Pitt’s Cameron Wright out 10 weeks after foot surgery
Basketball season hasn't officially started yet for the Pitt Panthers, but Jamie Dixon's squad will have to begin preparation for the 2014-15 season short one man. Senior guard Cameron Wright, who averaged 10.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game last season, broke his left foot Thursday and had to have surgery Friday. Wright is expected to be sidelined up to 10 weeks, meaning he should be back in the Pitt lineup right around Christmas time. In Wright's absence, sophomore Josh Newkirk is ... Read More