3 new faces in Pitt’s backcourt hope to meet high standard set by departed guards
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There is no mystery to what forward Blake Hinson can bring to Pitt’s basketball team. He led the team in scoring, rebounding and successful 3-point shots last season. He also is shouldering a leadership role now. Expectations are high, as they should be.
Big men Federiko Federiko and the Diaz Graham twins, Guillermo and Jorge, also are back after solid first seasons in the program.
But what about the guards? The players handling the ball more than anyone who are asked to hit those big shots that decide games? Remember Jamarius Burton in Dayton seven months ago in the NCAA Tournament?
• Who’s that guy this season?
• Will Pitt be able to adequately replace Burton, Nike Sibande, Nelly Cummings and Greg Elliott, who formed the heart of a team whose calling cards were clutch shooting and togetherness?
• Are freshmen Jaland Lowe and Bub Carrington up to the challenge of replacing players four and five years older than they are?
Junior guard Ismael Leggett, a transfer from Rhode Island who also needs to be part of the solution in the backcourt, saw something 3,630 miles from Petersen Events Center that made him feel Jeff Capel’s reconstruction plans are on the right track.
“Our second game in Spain was a little rough,” Leggett said. “Just seeing how they responded to adversity (was encouraging). Every game this year is not going to be what we want. I was glad to see they responded to adversity in a great manner. They were next-play oriented.”
The public gets its first look at the team at 4 p.m. Friday in an open practice at the Pete. There will be no admission charge.
Hinson and the other returning players are familiar to fans, but many eyes will be on Leggett, Lowe and Carrington.
Leggett said the work the freshmen put into polishing their games has been evident in practice.
“They’re sponges,” he said. “Anything you have to say good or bad, they’re willing to hear it. You’re going to see they are a special pair of freshmen, for sure.
“I can only speak to myself. I was not at their skill level (as a freshman). I try to push them each and every day to exceed expectations.”
Leggett (6-foot-3) and Carrington (6-5) are Maryland natives who played for the same AAU program. They were not unfamiliar with each other when they joined the team earlier this year.
“Before I even met Bub, I saw him play and he was cooking,” Leggett said. Translation: “He was scoring a lot of baskets.”
Lowe (6-3) said he understands the standard the former players set and the opportunity they have left for their successors.
“We knew coming in we would have the opportunity to play right away as freshmen,” he said.
So, what are they doing about it?
“Me and Bub, we stay in the gym,” Lowe said. “That’s all we do. We watch film. We ask questions of the coaches. We’re just eager to learn because we know how big of a responsibility we have this year.”
There always will be questions about freshmen, but Lowe said they’re working to “prove ourselves right and prove the others wrong.”
Lowe said he realized the enormity of his task within his first few days on campus.
“Me and Bub and a couple of the guys were just playing around (on the court),” he said. “I’m not going to lie. We were playing one-on-ones. We weren’t doing the best. We saw guys jumping high. It’s a different level now. Guys are a lot stronger. They jump higher. They’re longer. That was my welcome to college.”
Carrington remembers competing against Leggett one day in practice.
“I got the ball on the wing. Ish was guarding me, and he just took it from me,” he said. “You can’t get away with a lot of lazy things you did in high school. Definitely a lot more physical.”
Leggett has become a mentor to the freshmen, who said they welcome the guidance.
“He doesn’t let the slightest thing slide,” Carrington said. “He’s not scared to say something, good or bad. He’s been good at it for a long time. Whether it’s something you don’t want to hear, whether it’s something we need to hear, he’s going to be in our ear.”