Pitt rolls over Fairleigh Dickinson on good shooting night
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For 20 minutes of clock time, Pitt didn’t miss a 2-point shot in the second half of its 83-61 victory against Fairleigh Dickinson on Tuesday night at Petersen Events Center.
The Panthers took 17 shots inside the 3-point arc. All 17 were good.
OK, their shooting accuracy wasn’t actually perfect. Pitt missed six of nine 3-pointers after halftime.
But how does 76.9% (20 of 26) sound for an overall second-half shooting percentage?
“I’ve never been a part of a team that’s gone 17 for 17 from 2,” coach Jeff Capel said. “That’s something that’s very unique.”
Jamarius Burton had a simple explanation for his team’s strong shooting performance (31 for 58, 53.4% for the game).
“We were connected and we were taking good shots,” he said. “We weren’t forcing things. Coach said, `Turn down good (shots) for great.’ I feel like we did that.”
Burton led Pitt in scoring with 18 points – two days after missing the Alabama State game with knee inflammation – but all anyone wanted to talk about was his behind-the-back pass to center John Hugley, who contributed 17 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes.
“I knew where he would be,” said Burton, who shared game assist honors (four) with point guard Nelly Cummings. “I was trying to get the big man another touch.”
Said Capel: “He doesn’t do it all the time (in practice), but it’s something we’ve seen.”
Capel liked what his team did with the basketball. Five players scored in double digits, including Cummings, Jorge Diaz Graham and Blake Hinson (all with 11).
But he’s a coach who demands – and admires – good defense. And that’s what really made him smile.
Pitt (3-3) held Fairleigh Dickinson (3-4) to 25 points under its average and 36.5% (23 of 63) from the field.
“Their length and their size bothered us,” Fairleigh Dickinson coach Tobin Anderson said.
Anderson was especially impressed with 6-foot-11 Jorge Diaz Graham, who was a force on defense with his long arms.
“He’s like a pterodactyl,” Anderson said. “He has the longest arms in the world.”
For Capel, good defense was a matter of players following the game plan and putting their athletic gifts to use. Despite playing three games this week, Capel used only seven players, leaving bigs Guillermo Diaz Graham and Federiko Federiko on the bench for all but the last 1 minute, 41 seconds.
“We wanted to switch the ball screens, wanted to contain the penetration,” Capel said. “I just didn’t think those two bigger guys were ready for that.
“I thought we did a really good job of understanding the game plan, really guarding the basketball. We wanted to make them contested 2-point shooters and I thought for the most part we did that.”
The game was only the second this season in which Pitt had all of its players healthy. It also was the Panthers’ fourth in seven days, making intense practice this week next to impossible. Players will take Wednesday off before returning to practice Thursday in preparation for a game against William & Mary on Friday.
Perhaps playing several games in a short period of time will help Pitt find its identity.
“For us, we’re still trying to figure out who we are, what combinations work best together,” Capel said. “We’ve been in this stretch where we really didn’t have an opportunity to practice that much. It’s just been walk-throughs and the games.”
Hugley was a 6-foot-9 force in the paint against a smaller opponent, blocking two shots. But he’s still not in prime condition after missing six weeks of the preseason with a knee injury.
“I think we’re getting better,” Capel said. “It’s just going to take some time to get into the rhythm of everyone and getting back used to John and John getting used to playing with us.
“We have a long way to go to become the team I think we can be.”