Pitt holds on to beat Hokies

The ball movement was phenomenal, the shooting was clutch, and the Pitt men’s basketball team… The ball movement was phenomenal, the shooting was clutch, and the Pitt men’s basketball team made history Wednesday night, as it cruised to a victory against the Virginia Tech Hokies, 75-62.

The win marked the Panthers’ 20th of the season, which, for only the second time in school history, gave them back-to-back 20-win seasons.

Pitt head coach Ben Howland was surprised at this statistic and was more pleased with picking up a road victory in the Big East Conference, something the Panthers have been struggling to do recently.

“It’s very difficult to win on the road in this conference,” Howland said. “And that is why this is such a great win for us.”

This key victory, which holds a first place tie with Syracuse in the conference, was a result of not only tremendous shooting for the Panthers (20-4 overall, 10-3 conference) but also crisp passing and spreading the ball around as a team.

“I think it was just a whole team effort,” Pitt guard Brandin Knight said about the team’s passing. “Nobody wants to be labeled as selfish.”

Pitt was unselfish indeed in its performance, as the team had 19 of its 27 baskets assisted.

The game began with a 2-0 Virginia Tech lead on a quick layup basket. Things seemed to develop slowly at first for the Panthers, as the Hokies (10-16, 3-10) held their ground early.

Several lead changes occurred in the opening minutes, but the Hokies saw their final lead after a Terry Taylor basket to give them a 10-9 advantage.

Pitt center Toree Morris responded right away to the Virginia Tech lead, and shortly after came an explosive Julius Page dunk to increase the Pitt lead to 15-10.

Next came Knight. In one of the better shooting performances of his career, the Pitt guard knocked down his first three-pointer of the game to give the Panthers a 20-14 lead.

Shortly after, the Panthers went on a 15-5 run, lasting over four minutes. By halftime, the lead was expanded, with the Panthers on top, 40-29.

The second half was the Brandin Knight show. Knight scored the opening points of the half with a three-pointer to once again increase the Pitt lead.

The Panthers continued to control a double-figure lead for most of the half. However, as displayed earlier this season, this does not guarantee a victory.

The Hokies managed to get a burst of energy from their leading at the 6:57 mark, as Bryant Matthews put together a three-point play, making a layup and hitting a foul shot.

Soon after, Taylor grabbed a rebound and put the ball in the basket to cut the Panther lead to 58-50. The crowd became ecstatic and got on its feet to cheer.

Seconds later, however, the Hokies’ fans were silenced when Knight hit yet another three-pointer to bring back the Pitt lead.

The Hokies were never able to regain their momentum after the Knight basket, as the Panthers held their ground.

The remaining minutes consisted of Virginia Tech fouls to try to narrow Pitt’s lead. The Panthers’ were surprisingly successful from the charity stripe, however, making a rare 10 of their 13 free throws.

Five of those points came from Knight, as he was five for six from the line, but there was a lot more to the game than the shooting abilities of Knight, who scored 25 points.

Two other Panthers scored in the double digits, as Julius Page and Jaron Brown had 11 points each. As a team, the Panthers combined to make a total of 11 three-point baskets.

“I’ve never been around a more unselfish group of players,” Howland said. “We’re very efficient offensively right now.”

The Panthers offense does seem to be brilliant lately, and it couldn’t come at a better time. The Panthers have three remaining games, two of which are at home, before entering the Big East tournament.