Stallings dismisses first-year PG Justice Kithcart from Panthers

Pitt men’s basketball head coach Kevin Stallings dismissed first-year point guard Justice Kithcart from the team Friday morning, according to a Pitt Athletics press release.

“It is a privilege to play basketball at the University of Pittsburgh and with that privilege comes the responsibility to conduct oneself in the appropriate manner,” Stallings said in the press release. “Unfortunately, Justice has been unable to uphold that standard. We wish him the best of luck in the future.”

The release stated the reason for Kithcart’s dismissal as “conduct detrimental to the team,” but didn’t specify what Kithcart did to prompt the decision.

A 6-foot-1, 185-pound point guard from Durham, North Carolina, Kithcart was averaging 1.3 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. He appeared in 29 out of 30 games for the Panthers, making two starts.

Kithcart scored 11 points in 16 ACC games, but a career-high nine of those points came via three 3-pointers in Pitt’s Feb. 8 win over Boston College.

The Panthers (15-15 overall, 4-13 ACC) will conclude the regular season at noon Saturday, March 4, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Pitt will take on the No. 23 Virginia Cavaliers with a chance to secure its 18th-straight winning season. A loss would give the Panthers their first sub-.500 season since the 1999-00 season, Ben Howland’s first year as head coach.