Pitt men’s basketball’s woes continued on Tuesday night, falling to Syracuse 69-58. The Panthers need to figure things out soon, or the idea of having even an NIT appearance could fade away. 

Here are my takeaways from the brutal defeat and what the Panthers need to do so this downward trend ends.

What a difference a year makes

The Panthers played in a sold-out Petersen Events Center against Syracuse last year, an atmosphere reminding Pitt fans of the glory days when the Panthers were a perennial top 10 team.

This year, the Panthers played the Orange in a half-empty Petersen Events Center, the atmosphere reminding Pitt fans of the Kevin Stallings era when the Panthers were lucky to accumulate 10 wins.

Last year, Aidan Fisch, a walk-on, lucky enough to play in his final home game at the Petersen Events Center, made an acrobatic layup that caused the Petersen Events Center to get so loud that people in South Oakland could hear the raucous. 

This year, first-year guard Calton “Bub” Carrington, a potential NBA lottery pick, went 0-for-10 from the field, with every miss making the Petersen Events Center quieter and quieter so that people in the upper deck could hear the players’ shoes squeak.

Last year, Syracuse first-year guard Judah Mintz, who decommitted from Pitt a year prior, ripped his jersey out of frustration after finishing the game with a -13 +/-.

This year, now sophomore Mintz, jersey intact, got his revenge against the Panthers, finishing the game with a 12 +/-.

Last year, Pitt won 99-82, boosting their tournament resume on their way to returning to March Madness for the first time since 2016.

This year, Pitt lost 69-58, further diminishing hopes of making it to March Madness in 2024 and their chances of appearing in the NIT. 

Lack of toughness

“We have to be mentally tougher and have to be physically tougher,” Panthers head coach Jeff Capel said after Tuesday night’s loss. “I thought in the first half there were about five opportunities for us to dive and get a loose ball. And we didn’t do it.”

The Panthers’ lack of mental and physical toughness was apparent against Syracuse. The Orange came into Pittsburgh and just wanted it more than the Panthers.

During the waning moments of the second half, Pitt, led by first-year guard Jaland Lowe, started to claw back into the game and had an opportunity to bring the game within single digits after Lowe converted an and-one layup. 

But Syracuse took all of the excitement out of the Petersen Events Center on its next possession. During this pivotal possession, the Orange grabbed two offensive rebounds, were fouled by Pitt with two seconds on the shot clock and scored on their fourth opportunity. 

The Panthers’ lack of toughness ruined any chances of coming back as Syracuse wasted 1 minute and 16 seconds off the game clock.

Simply grabbing a rebound or not fouling with a low shot clock could have changed the entire game around. But they didn’t, and the Orange ran away with the game. 

Jaland Lowe is the Panthers’ future

On the positive side of things, Lowe showed tons of promise to Panthers fans as he finished with a career-high 20 points on 8-for-15 shooting along with three assists and three rebounds. 

In last week’s takeaways, I said that fans need to trust the process with Lowe and he is an All-ACC caliber player. Against Syracuse, that process is off to a blazing start. A week ago, Lowe was getting great looks at the rim and from midrange but failed to convert. Against the Orange, the opposite was true — he made the same shots that he missed against Duke and showed how much of a threat he is. 

The first-year guard from Missouri City, Texas, is the future for Pitt, and he has the mindset that Panther fans want to hear. 

“I just wanted to win,” Lowe said when asked about his 16-point second-half performance against Syracuse. “I wanted to give us a spark, be that guy to step up.”

Like Lowe’s first-year guard running mate, Carrington, who went 0-10 from the field against Syracuse, he will have off nights. But throughout the season, Lowe has shown he has what it takes to compete at the ACC level.

A win at Duke changes the season

Although unlikely, the Panthers have a perfect opportunity ahead if they want to turn the entire season around. A victory over Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium gives the Panthers a path to make it to March Madness, gets Panthers fans believing again and shows that the players heard Capel’s message of showing mental and physical toughness.

Fans can watch Pitt try to change their season in Durham on Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. on the ACC Network.