Game 18: Pitt 54 Fruit 59

I will say it right now.  Pitt has no bench.  They are now officially a 5 person team.  Pitt did some things well.  They got 19 second chance points (to 2 for the Cuse) from 16 offensive rebounds.  However, they shot 13-23 from the line and allowed Syracuse to shoot 52%.  The media will say how Pitt proved it was a contender by hanging with the #2 team in the country on the road, but it was still an opportunity wasted.  After trailing in the 2nd half by 10 points on numerous occasions, Pitt finally took a 52-49 lead on some Patterson free throws with 4:41 left.  If you do the Math, that means Syracuse ended the game on a 10-2 run.  Credit their defense.  Pitt could not get anything going inside as Syracuse's length caused all kinds of problems.  The Orange blocked 7 shots.  I'm complaining about Pitt's lack of depth, yet Syracuse had 3 guys play 40 minutes.  They are also dealing with injury as center DaJuan Coleman is out for the year.

Pitt plays Clemson in an hour so I need to hand out some grades.

Lamar Patterson - Syracuse took control in the first part of the second half.  A three-pointer from Tyler Ennis pushed the lead to 10.  Then Patterson did this over the next minute.

Seriously, here's the last of those triples.

"From Downtown!"

Oh and he made another 3 to give Pitt the lead, and the two free throws to extend it to a 3 point advantage.  Pitt played Syracuse tight all game, but there was that stretch when the Orange threatened to pull away.  Patterson wouldn't let them.  He eventually cooled off and missed some shots down the stretch.  Also, Boeheim decided to foul Patterson rather than let him tie the game with a 3 in the closing seconds.  Patterson would have to make the first and miss the second.  I told my dad, "I bet he misses the first."  He missed the first.  He purposely missed the second, Syracuse got the rebound, and two more free throws finished the scoring.

Grade:  A-

Talib Zanna - Zanna did some nice things.  He had 12 points and 11 rebounds, but Rakeem Christmas basically made him his bitch.  Christmas shot 4-4, mostly on Zanna.

Grade:  C+

Cameron Wright - Cameron Wright made a three pointer (announcers said he was 3-20 on the year), but didn't record a steal.  I'm submitting this to Sports Illustrated so it can be included in their "Sign of the Apocalypse" feature.

Grade:  B-

James Robinson - Robinson made 3 jumpers in the first half, but he picked up a crucial 3rd foul early in the second half with Pitt only down 2.  When he came back, Pitt was down 10.  He has to stay out of foul trouble.  He also had a turnover, which stinks because they're so rare.

Grade:  B-

Michael Young - The kid is a pretty clutch free throw shooter.  His two free throws were the only 2 points Pitt scored in the final 5 minutes.  He did miss one a few moments before that, though.  Other than the free throws he was non-existent and contributed to Pitt's poor interior defense.

Grade:  C

Chris Jones -  With Pitt down 4, he missed two free throws.  That's all I remember from his 7 minutes.

Grade:  D

Josh Newkirk - He turned the ball over once in 5 minutes.

Grade:  D

Jamel Artis - He made a nice hook shot in the second half to cut the lead to 4.

Grade:  C

Derrick Randall - He had an assist, a rebound, and a steal in his 3 minutes.  He missed both of his shots, but he did not commit a foul, which is always a pleasant surprise.

Grade:  C+

That's it.  Pitt and Clemson are about to tip off.

Prediction:  Pitt 63 Clemson 57

Hail to Pitt,
J.O.