Men’s basketball: Pitt uses late second half run to avoid upset against USF

Pitt’s leading scorer Ashton Gibbs followed his teammates onto the court for last night’s… Pitt’s leading scorer Ashton Gibbs followed his teammates onto the court for last night’s home-game win against South Florida, but once again, he wasn’t in uniform.

Gibbs, a game-time decision recovering from an an MCL injury, missed the team’s third game in a row. For much of the game, Gibbs’ absence was painfully obvious as the Panthers offense just couldn’t figure out South Florida’s zone defense.

Pitt allowed the heavy underdog Bulls (8-19, 1-12 Big East) to keep it close late into the second half, but then the Panthers (24-2, 12-1 Big East) found their shooting stroke when it mattered most and used a crucial 14-2 run to escape with a 67-55 win.

The victory takes Pitt’s record to 3-0 without Gibbs. This was also the third consecutive game that four Panthers have scored in double digits.

“We’re a very balanced team and everyone can step up and make plays,” senior guard Brad Wanamaker said in a post-game press conference. “That’s what we showed tonight.”

It took a South Florida missed layup to spark the Panthers’ run and awaken Pitt’s offensive attack.

With just under eight minutes remaining and Pitt leading by two, it appeared like South Florida was about to tie the game as sophomore guard Shaun Noriega stole the ball and ran the length of the court for a layup.

But Panthers guard Travon Woodall sprinted back and pressured Noriega — causing him to miss — and Pitt quickly passed the ball up the court where senior forward Gary McGhee converted a layup while getting fouled.

“That’s a play I really regret now,” Noriega said after the game. “I should’ve went up stronger.”

“That five-point swing happened, and we just never recovered,” South Florida head coach Stan Heath said.

Following McGhee’s free throw, Wanamaker hit the Panthers’ second and final 3-pointer of the game to put them up by eight.

It would prove an insurmountable lead as, from that point on, South Florida never got within eight points of the Panthers.

“We did really well to keep our poise and execute toward the end of the game,” Wanamaker said.

Toward the end of the first half, it appeared like Pitt would cruise to a victory.

Freshman forward Talib Zanna controlled the offensive glass early on and he scored an impressive eight consecutive points for Pitt about 10 minutes into the game.

The Panthers led by as many as 13 and shot an efficient 57.7 percent from the field in the first half when South Florida was employing the traditional man-to-man defense.

After the break, the Bulls switched to the zone defense and Pitt’s offense faltered. The Panthers missed eight of their first nine shots in the second half.

South Florida’s defense also managed to spark its offense.

The Bulls made six of their first 11 shots following the break as they managed to keep the game close.

But South Florida was never able to take the lead.

While Pitt’s offense was struggling mightily, the Panthers’ defense and rebounding kept them narrowly in front until they made their late run.

Pitt finished with a dominating 40 to 18 rebounding edge over the Bulls, who were the Big East’s fourth best rebounding team coming into the game.

“We struggled rebounding and just couldn’t match [Pitt’s] physical play,” Heath said.

The Panthers lead the nation in rebounding advantage.

“We really emphasized rebounding coming into this game after getting out-rebounded by Villanova so to out-rebound [South Florida] by 22 speaks volumes,” Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon said.

Pitt’s next game is Saturday when it travels to Madison Square Garden in New York City to face St. John’s.