Pitt defeats ‘Cuse, 73-60

Brandin Knight did not need to score a basket thanks to big performances from Julius Page and… Brandin Knight did not need to score a basket thanks to big performances from Julius Page and Chevon Troutman in then-No. 3 Pitt’s 73-60 victory over the then-No. 25 Syracuse Orangemen in front of a crowd of 12,508 on Saturday afternoon at the Petersen Events Center.

Knight had to come out of the game after being knocked to the ground by Craig Forth, who was trying to set a pick. Knight was held scoreless, but recorded six assists.

“We have so much depth that anybody can step up,” Pitt head coach Ben Howland said. “You can’t say ‘if we stop Brandin we’re going to beat Pittsburgh.'”

“Knight just didn’t have a good game. We were fortunate to catch Knight not having a good game,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “I don’t worry about one guy when we play Pittsburgh. You’ve got to worry about all of them and tonight was a good example of that.”

The Panthers fell behind early as a result of early turnovers. Page and Troutman combined for 10 points to give the Panthers their first lead of the afternoon with five minutes, 22 seconds left in the first half.

Pitt (14-1 overall, 4-0 Big East) and Syracuse were close early on until the Panthers took the lead after a Page three-pointer, which made the score 13-12.

Pitt’s attempted shots beyond the arc hurt the team, as it was 2-of-10 from three-point range in the first 12 minutes plus of the game.

“I think we were settling for threes in the first half early on,” Page said. “Then Chevy subbed into the game and we started getting some layups.”

Syracuse (11-2, 2-1) went on a 6-0 run following Page’s three-pointer. Orangemen forward Carmelo Anthony and center Forth each scored baskets and guard Kueth Duany completed the run by hitting both of his foul shots.

Following Duany’s foul shots, Troutman put Pitt back on the scoreboard with a layup. On Syracuse’s next possession, Orangemen guard Gerry McNamara lost track of the shot clock, which gave the ball back to Pitt.

Page and the Panthers took advantage of McNamara’s miscue as Page’s basket brought Pitt back to within three. After another Syracuse turnover, Troutman scored again, making the score 19-18.

On the Orangemen’s next possession, forward Hakim Warrick went to the foul line and was only able to convert one of two foul shots. Again, Troutman was able to take advantage of a Syracuse missed opportunity with a layup, which tied the score at 20.

Syracuse answered right back at the other end as Warrick scored to put the Orangemen back on top, 22-20.

Junior forward Jaron Brown retied the score at 22 with a basket and Page scored on the Panthers’ following possession, which put them up by two.

Troutman followed up Page’s basket with a steal. Troutman dribbled down into the paint and gave it to Brown. Brown attempted a layup in a crowd of Orangemen defenders but missed. Senior forward Donatas Zavackas followed Brown’s miss with a layup.

With Pitt leading 26-22, McNamara scored four points in a row for the Orangemen with his last basket in the sequence coming off of a steal. The score was tied at 26 and that’s when Page took over.

Page hit two three-pointers in a row, which put the Panthers ahead 32-26 and Syracuse trailed for the remainder of the game.

McNamara added another basket for Syracuse and Zavackas added another basket for Pitt making the score 34-28 at the half.

Syracuse closed the gap in the second half with a 10-5 run. The Orangemen were aided by three-pointers from McNamara and Anthony. Anthony’s three-pointer brought the Orangemen within one, but Page hit a clutch three-pointer after an injury time out for Knight.

Page’s three-pointer was a part of an 11-4 run by the Panthers with six of the 11 points coming from Troutman. For the remainder of the game when Syracuse scored a basket, Pitt usually had an answer at the other end.

Eventually Pitt built upon its lead with its physical defense and strong play on the boards. The Panthers came up with 11 steals, forced 20 turnovers and had 20 defensive rebounds. Pitt converted the 20 turnovers into 33 points and outrebounded the Orangemen at both ends of the floor by a total of 35-27.

“They know when to be physical and they ride you a little bit,” Boeheim said. “We’re not as physical as they are. I think this is a good learning experience for our players.”

Troutman closed out his strong performance by scoring seven of Pitt’s remaining 10 points of the game. Page finished the game with 25 points and Troutman had 23 points.

“Troutman knows how to seal. He’s the best guy on our team at getting his body on the defender and not letting him get around him and moving his feet,” Howland said. “He’s the strongest guy on the team overall.”

“We know that if we throw the ball into [Troutman] he’s going to catch it. If we get it close to the basket, we know that he’s athletic enough to make the play,” Page said. “It’s just a matter of us having confidence in him making the play.”

The Orangemen’s leading scorer was McNamara with 19 points. Anthony chipped in with 14 points.

“When you look at this game, you can see that we have a veteran team. I think that was the advantage for us,” Howland said. “These guys play hard, it’s clean. It’s nothing but clean fun.”

The Panthers are next in action Jan. 25 as they host Big East foe Georgetown with tip-off scheduled for noon.