Pitt finds a way to win on the road

The Pitt men’s basketball team may have found its go-to guy.

Senior point guard Brandin… The Pitt men’s basketball team may have found its go-to guy.

Senior point guard Brandin Knight posted a season-high 23 points while turning in a perfect six-of-six performance from the free-throw line. Knight also knocked down three-of-five from beyond the three-point line.

For Knight it has been a tough season in terms of point production and shooting the basketball, but against Georgetown he found his shot from all areas of the floor, including his long-time nemesis, the foul line.

Knight’s shooting struggles have haunted him all season, as he hadn’t scored more than 20 points since he scored 22 in the 87-71 Rhode Island defeat. Coming into tonight’s contest, Knight was averaging just less than 10 points a game, whereas last season he averaged 15.6 per game.

The shooting woes for Knight this season in conference play have become very apparent, as coming into tonight’s game, Knight was shooting 26.5 percent from the floor, against last season’s average of 41.4 percent.

Tuesday night, all of the demons were exorcised.

He scored more than 20 points for the first time in conference play since he scored exactly 20 points against Miami on March 8, 2002. Also, Knight shot a solid 58.3 percent from the floor.

Knight’s leadership flowed to his teammates who also found their complete games. Veteran starters Donatas Zavackas, Jaron Brown and Julius Page put together their best game of the season as they, with Knight, each tallied double-digit scoring figures.

Following from Knight’s cue, Zavackas poured in three three-pointers in addition to a four-of-four shooting from the charity stripe, adding up to a 17-point performance on the night.

“Two seniors who have been here for four years had great games tonight,” head coach Ben Howland said of Knight’s and Zavackas’ combined 40 points and six three-pointers.

The quartet of Knight, Zavackas, Brown and Page led the Panthers to the 15-point victory over the Georgetown Hoyas – and led in every aspect of the game. The group shot a blistering 58 percent from the field in addition to a 50-percent display from the three-point line.

The foursome also tallied 62 of the Panthers’ 82 total points, which means they accounted for more than 75 percent of Pitt’s offense. The even more impressive number comes from the foul line where they tossed in 19-of-20 attempts from the line.

After the game, Howland expressed how important the play of these four players was to the team.

“It’s not me, it’s the leadership within the team,” he said.