Men’s basketball: Gibbs’ hot shooting leads Pitt to win over Marquette

Pitt guard Ashton Gibbs entered Saturday afternoon’s game against Marquette as one of the… This story was updated Sunday, Jan. 9.

Pitt guard Ashton Gibbs entered Saturday afternoon’s game against Marquette as one of the premier shooters in college basketball.

When Pitt tipped off against the Golden Eagles at the Petersen Events Center on Saturday, Gibbs continued to prove himself by hitting four consecutive three-pointers from four different spots on the floor.

The early shooting exhibition seemed to immediately throw Marquette off balance, and the Golden Eagles spent the rest of the game chasing Pitt’s offense around the floor before losing 89-81 to the No. 5 Panthers.

Gibbs, who finished with a team-high 19 points, adjusted accordingly when Marquette (11-5, 2-1 Big East) started showing him some more attention.

At one point in the first half, with Marquette’s coach Buzz Williams screaming to “watch No. 12,” Gibbs gave a hard shot fake on the baseline, drove strong drawing three defenders and then dished to Brad Wanamaker who drilled a wide open three. Marquette simply couldn’t keep track of all of the Panthers’ shooters.

“It started in practice I think,” Gibbs said after the game. “Being patient, Coach [Jamie] Dixon stressing to move the ball and use the shot clock, and I think that’s what we did this game, we just need to be consistent with it.”

The Panthers (15-1, 3-0 Big East) averaged 6.1 3-pointers per game coming into Saturday’s contest; they hit 10 against Marquette.

Along with its shooting, Pitt’s depth has been on display recently, as different players have been stepping up in various games throughout the season.

With an 11-man rotation, 10 players are currently averaging at least 10 minutes a game. Of those 10 players, nine are averaging five points or better a game.

“I think it’s just the balance of this team,” Wanamaker said after the game. “We have multiple guys who come in and lead us in scoring every game. That carries over to us playing unselfish.”

Wanamaker, who finished the game with 15 points, five rebounds and six assists, was one of four players to score in the double digits on Saturday afternoon for Pitt.

The win pushed the Panthers home record at the Petersen Events Center to a gaudy 144-11 all-time, and the Panthers are once again undefeated in Big East play and will compete for the league championship once again.

“You don’t want to take it for granted but we do expect to win and our fans expect us to win. I guess it’s better than the alternative,” Dixon said.

“We still have to go out there and play hard and play well and we did.”

Additionally, Gilbert Brown has been on a bit of a hot streak for the Panthers recently. Coming into Saturday’s game, Brown was averaging 16.6 points a game over the previous five contests, while shooting 58.8 percent from the field and an impressive 61.9 percent from 3-point range.

He continued the trend on Saturday by going 2 for 3 from 3-point range and 3 for 6 from the field on his way to 14 points.

“We just shared the ball shooting and it was an all-around effort,” Wanamaker said. “We got everyone contributing.”

Late in the game, Pitt had two consecutive defensive possessions that ended with blocks. The second block, by Gary McGhee, just about sealed the deal for the Panthers. McGhee had been playing well all night and was 5 for 5 shooting from the field.

Recently, McGhee’s hard work off the court has been paying off as Panther fans are beginning to see an improvement in his offensive game.

“The last couple games have given me a lot of confidence to keep working and getting better,” McGhee said after the game. “When I get the ball down low I’m just trying to go up strong and finish it.”

Dixon wasn’t shy about praising McGhee either, who finished the game with 12 points, six rebounds and three blocks.

“One thing you can’t question is Gary McGhee’s work ethic,” Dixon said after the game. “Just this last week we’ve seen him finishing better; he works relentlessly on his free throws and his defense has been very good.”

But the Panthers don’t have much time to relax after the win, as they travel to Georgetown this week to take on the perennial power on Wednesday.

“We just had a good win and now we go on the road to play the No. 1 team in RPI, Georgetown, on Wednesday,” Dixon said. “It says a lot about our team because this conference has been pretty good the last couple years, by far the best in the country.”