Pitt keeps streak alive in victory

The No. 13 Panthers’ play on the offensive boards down the stretch allowed them to squeak… The No. 13 Panthers’ play on the offensive boards down the stretch allowed them to squeak past the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 74-71 before a sellout crowd at the Petersen Events Center last night.

Pitt trailed for a considerable amount of the game, but Pitt guard Carl Krauser hit a three-pointer with seven minutes, 25 seconds left in the game, and the Panthers never were behind again.

In the closing minutes of the game, Pitt was sent to the free throw line on a number of occasions. The Panthers attempted 13 foul shots during the final six minutes of the game and only knocked down eight of them, but they were able to come up with the rebound on several of their misses.

“Our guys do what they always do. They find a way to win,” Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon said.

With Pitt nursing a two point lead, Panthers’ forward Chevon Troutman missed his second attempt from the charity stripe, but Pitt was able to get the rebound and Jaron Brown, who led Pitt in scoring with 19 points, was able to lay it in, making the score 57-52.

“I thought that the offensive rebounds in the second half really hurt us,” Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey said. “They have some wide bodies and they do a great job getting body position.”

From there the Panthers went on a 6-2 run before Notre Dame was able to cut its deficit to one as a result of clutch three-point shooting from Notre Dame guards Chris Quinn and Chris Thomas, who led all scorers with 29 points.

“They hit some tough threes,” Dixon said. “But sometimes, that’s going to happen.”

Thomas hit a shot from beyond the arc with one minute, 29 seconds left, and Quinn hit a three-pointer ten seconds later, narrowing Pitt’s lead, which was as much as eight points, to 67-66.

On Pitt’s ensuing possession, Thomas fouled Pitt guard Julius Page as he attempted a three-pointer. Despite only making one out of three foul shots, Page was able to grab the rebound following his missed free throw on the final attempt. As Page secured the rebound, he was fouled again and made one of two shots at the charity stripe.

The Panthers finished the game with center Chris Taft and Troutman nailing all of their foul shots respectively; while Brown knocked down one of two free throws.

“Our guys always seem to hit free throws when we need it,” Dixon said.

At the end of the first half, Pitt trailed the Fighting Irish in the rebound category and on the scoreboard. It was down 31-30 and had been out played on the boards 24-17, despite being even at eight with Notre Dame on the offensive boards.

“I thought that we deserved to win,” Thomas said. “[But] by no means is this a moral victory,”

The two squads finished the game deadlocked at 36 total rebounds, but Pitt won the battle on the offensive glass with 10 offensive boards for a total of 18 rebounds on offense compared to the Fighting Irish’s 15.

Pitt opened the game on a 6-2 run as Troutman and Taft gave it an early 4-0 lead on two buckets in the paint. Notre Dame followed with a 5-1 run of its own. This tied the game at seven with a three-pointer from Thomas and a basket from Torrian Jones.

After Pitt regained the lead, Jones again knotted the game, this time at 12, with a basket. Thomas followed with a score and the Fighting Irish proceeded to go on a 14-5 run, which gave them a 24-17 lead. The Panthers closed the gap with an 8-2 run of their own which brought them to within one at the half.

“We always find a way to win,” Krauser said. “I guess we wanted it more.”