Three ways the Panthers can improve

What has happened to Pitt men’s basketball?

Two weeks ago, this was a team that had lost… What has happened to Pitt men’s basketball?

Two weeks ago, this was a team that had lost only once, looked poised to capture the No. 1 spot in both polls and ready to roll through the remainder of the Big East regular season and tournament.

Now Pitt has lost two of its last three games and doesn’t seem to be able to win outside of the Petersen Events Center.

First, there was the scare against Georgetown. Holding an 11-point lead with 12 minutes left, Pitt let the Hoyas go on an 11-0 run, allowing Georgetown to get back into the game.

If it weren’t for Jaron Brown’s quick decision-making and Julius Page’s clutch free-throw shooting, a one-point victory could have turned into the Panthers’ first loss at the Pete.

The following weekend at Syracuse, Pitt held a 13-point lead with 17 minutes to go. The Orangemen then went on 9-0 run and continued to chip away at Pitt’s lead before taking the game on a last-second basket by Jeremy McNeil.

The trend continued last Wednesday against Providence. Pitt held a 45-31 lead with 16 minutes left against the Friars, but thanks to the Panthers’ usually suspect free-throw shooting, they were able to hold on for a 68-61 win.

With Sunday’s 66-64 loss to Notre Dame, in which the Panthers lost a 10-point lead, Pitt has now blown double-digit second half leads in its last four games.

How does this keep happening? How can a team that was supposed to be a Final Four favorite not know how to deliver the knockout punch?

And, more importantly, how can it be fixed?

Here are three possible answers:

-The Panthers need to be more aggressive inside once they get a big lead.

The first time it faced Notre Dame and Syracuse, Pitt attacked the Irish and Orangemen inside.

Against the Irish, the Panthers outscored Notre Dame 52-22 inside the paint, led by Ontario Lett’s 20 points, and won the battle on the boards, 51-30. A few games later, Chevon Troutman poured in 23 points and Pitt outrebounded Syracuse, 35-27.

In the rematch against Syracuse, Pitt’s combination of inside players combined for 29 points in the first half. The Panthers outrebounded the Orangemen, 22-18, and held a 43-31 halftime lead.

However, in the second half, those inside guys scored just 15 points, as Troutman fouled out with more than seven minutes to play and Brown played most of the second half with four fouls. The Orangemen also controlled the glass, outrebounding Pitt, 23-15.

At Notre Dame on Sunday, Troutman racked up 16 points inside, but 14 of them came in the first half. Lett was held to just four points and while Brown managed to add 10 points of his own, six of them came from beyond the three-point line.

And after outrebounding the Irish 24-10 in the first half, Pitt managed to grab just nine rebounds for the rest of the game compared to Notre Dame’s 16.

In the second half of both of those games, Pitt shot a combined 32 percent compared to 55 percent in the first half.

And in both games, the Panthers settled for outside shots with the big lead, rather than continue with what worked: pounding the ball inside.

-While depth is a valuable asset, the Panthers’ rotation is too big.

Having guys that can come off the bench and play at the same level as the starters is what every team wants and it’s something that Pitt lacked last season.

But at times, it seems to be holding the team back instead of allowing it to succeed. One of the few advantages of having a five or six man rotation is that those players get used to playing with one another and know what everyone else on the floor is likely to do.

While the Panthers may play a lot together during practice, it’s hard to get into a rhythm when guys are being shuffled in and out of the lineup constantly.

What makes it even harder is when the team that’s on the floor goes from a group of players that’s dominant on the inside to one that’s strength is around the perimeter.

-When the game does get close, there’s no one to step up.

Last year, Brandin Knight served as Pitt’s go-to guy in the closing minutes of games and most times, he delivered.

With the exception of a 22-point outburst against Rhode Island, Knight has not been the same player he was last year and no one has been able to step up and take his place.

Early in the season, it seemed like it varied from game to game who was going to step up for the Panthers. But those games weren’t close.

Pitt’s last four games have been decided by a total of 12 points and in each of those four games, the Panthers’ most dominant players have disappeared.

And until someone, whether it be Knight or anyone else, finds a way to right the ship, it could be a very short trip to the dance for Pitt.

Joe Marchilena is the assistant sports editor of The Pitt News.