There is nothing wrong with a road conference win, no matter how ugly it looks at times. The first half was tight with 7 ties and 11 lead changes. The Panthers trailed at the break for only the third time this year. Turnovers killed Pitt in the first half. They were getting great shots when they attempted them. Zanna had a layup off a great pass from Robinson to open the game, and the next possession Patterson found Wright on an alley-oop. Georgia Tech just hit a few threes and Pitt gave away too many possessions. In the second half, Pitt took care of the ball and continued to dominate the glass. The Panthers held a 38-18 edge in rebounding. shot 57% (to 46% for GT), and still only won by 7. Georgia Tech made up the difference by making 8 threes to only 2 for Pitt.
Pitt came out on fire in the second half, which is something we've seen from them throughout conference play. A 9-0 to start the half gave them the lead for good. Georgia Tech, and by Georgia Tech I mean Trae Golden, made it close at the end, but Pitt made free throws. Seriously, I have to give Golden credit. Pitt was leading 72-62 with 90 seconds left, and Golden scored the last 12 points without missing a shot from anywhere on the floor until the final few seconds. He's a very good player, but this isn't a Georgia Tech blog so let's grade some Pitt players.
Lamar Patterson - Patterson had probably the worst half of his Pitt career to start this game. He didn't score in the first half and had 4 turnovers. The first 18 minutes of the second half were much better for Patterson. He made a 3, completed a 3 point play and took care of the ball. Unfortunately, he turned the ball over three more times in the final 2 minutes, which allowed Georgia Tech to get back in the game. Patterson is so good that he can sometimes make up for poor shooting nights (4-13) with his other play (7 rebounds 7 great assists), but the 7 turnovers cannot be ignored. This was easily his worst game.
Grade: D
Talib Zanna - Zanna was a monster. The man is on a mission to dominate conference play. He had 22 points and 9 rebounds on 8-10 shooting. He should have gotten a double double but I guess he decided to stop rebounding the last 13 minutes of the game. Oh well, he was still incredible. He was aggressive down low and finished around the rim.
Grade: A+ (Co-MVP)
James Robinson - Robinson carried Pitt in the first half. He had 13 of his career high 16 before the intermission. He shot 5-7 from the field with 5 assists and 4 steals. He made his first bad pass in about a month that resulted in his only turnover, but other than that it was an absolutely flawless performance.
Grade: A+ (Co-MVP)
Cameron Wright - Wright bounced back with 14 points (12 in the second half). He finished a couple of great looks from Patterson, but I don't really remember much from him in this game. Robinson, Zanna, and Patterson were the stories.
Grade: B+
Michael Young - He was only 1-4 from the field, but he had 7 rebounds and made all 4 of his free throws in the final minutes of play when Georgia Tech was making their run. The freshman did not wilt under the pressure. I worry sometimes that Young tries to do too much. This is probably due to him starting, but Artis and Newkirk seem to understand their roles better. The kid is going to be special, though, and his free throw-shooting (85%) for a big man is HUGE.
Grade: A
Jamel Artis - He made 2 of his 3 shots, and that's all I have for him.
Grade: B
Chris Jones - He didn't score but committed two fouls in his 4 minutes of play. I don't think he's ready for big-time minutes off the bench.
Grade: C
Derrick Randall - He had a layup and scored another on a basket interference call on Georgia Tech. However, he was beaten badly on defense once, causing color commentator Len Elmore to chastise him for it.
Grade: C-
Josh Newkirk - Newkirk made his only shot, but played an otherwise quiet 12 minutes.
Grade: B
Pitt's starters average about 135 minutes during the season, and they
played 153 last night. This will be the norm for the rest of the season
with Johnson out. Foul trouble and fatigue will be huge concerns. Pitt visits the Dome on Saturday. It should be a dandy.
Hail to Pitt,
J.O.
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