Men’s Basketball: Panthers take win streak to South Florida

The Pitt men’s basketball team considers itself undefeated.

Following the team’s eighth… The Pitt men’s basketball team considers itself undefeated.

Following the team’s eighth consecutive loss against Louisville on Jan. 21, the players and coaches decided to forget about all of their struggles and pretend to begin a new season.

The Panthers (15-9, 4-7 Big East) haven’t lost since.

“Things have definitely changed,” junior center Dante Taylor said. “But we always believed in ourselves and knew we could do it.”

Sophomore forward Lamar Patterson said it’s no coincidence that Pitt’s current four-game win streak began right after starting point guard Travon Woodall returned from his abdominal and groin injuries.

“Since he came back, we’ve been playing a whole lot better collectively,” Patterson said. “Just having him out there gives everyone spirit to get wins.”

Pitt’s record with Woodall in the lineup is 10-3, whereas the Panthers went 5-6 without their point guard.

Wednesday night, Woodall — named the Big East Player of the Week on Monday — and the Panthers will put their “undefeated” season on the line when they travel to South Florida to face the Bulls (13-10, 6-4 Big East) at 7 p.m.

Facing the physicality of the Bulls’ forwards will provide a challenge for Pitt.

“They have good size and really try to get the ball inside,” Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon said. “We’ve got to contain their big guys.”

South Florida senior center Augustus Gilchrist and sophomore forward Victor Rudd lead the Bulls’ front line, but the team’s real strength comes in its depth. Nine active players average more than 15 minutes per game for the balanced Bulls.

However, with Gilchrist the only player on the team averaging more than 10 points per game, a lack of a go-to scorer has plagued South Florida’s offense this season. The Bulls have failed to break the 50-point barrier in seven games and lost all of those contests.

Patterson said he believes the game could be a hard-fought defensive struggle, but he said that’s not something the Panthers are afraid of.

“It’s going to be a challenge. But we’re tough, and it’s nothing we’ll back down from,” he said.

With both teams boasting impressive rebounding margins, Dixon also said that the battle on the boards will be a crucial part of Wednesday night’s matchup.

“They’ve been playing really well and playing to their strengths. We’ve got to go in and hurt them on the glass,” he said. “They’re a good rebounding team, but I think we can do some things and take good shots to allow us to get in good rebounding positions.”

South Florida will gain an advantage from playing on its home floor.

The Bulls have played their best basketball this season on their court, recording an 11-1 record. Pitt is just 1-4 away from the Petersen Events Center in conference play, but that lone win came on the Panthers’ most recent road trip to West Virginia.

Patterson said that victory in Morgantown has given Pitt renewed confidence in its ability to win on the road.

“Going down there to get a win in that hostile environment showed a lot of toughness from us,” he said.

Taylor said he believes every game for Pitt is a must-win and that it’s important for the Panthers to keep building on their winning streak.

“We started over, and now we’re 4-0. And we want to build on that,” Taylor said.