Sheldon Jeter comes in hot from the start

When the Petersen Events Center PA system bellowed out the Pitt men’s basketball team’s starting lineup, the first name called probably surprised the majority of Panthers faithful.

The announcer roared Sheldon Jeter’s name over the pre-game hype music blaring in the background.

Jeter hadn’t started a game this season. Up until Sunday, Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon had opted for either Alonzo Nelson-Ododa or Rafael Maia as Pitt’s fifth starter, although the coach has continually referred to Jeter as “one of our four guys.”

But against Virginia Tech, with Maia ailing from a groin injury, Dixon tapped Jeter, and the junior forward provided more than a boost  early on, helping Pitt avoid another slow start. The Beaver County native finished with a career-high 23 points in Pitt’s 90-71 victory over the Hokies.

After checking into the game with a smile, Jeter converted an old-fashioned 3-point play. He nailed two free throws. Then he made a contested jumper. Then another. He was searing.

“It was really big for us, Sheldon being aggressive,” senior point guard James Robinson said. “I think when he comes in off the bench, he brings that scoring from the bench. But today he came right off from the jump and was aggressive for us, hit shots for us. He had a really good game.”

Then, as he does every so often, Jeter took flight, slamming home a dunk for his 11th point of the game that electrified the crowd at the Petersen Events Center.

Jeter said he learned about Sunday’s lineup earlier oin the day when assistant coach Brandon Knight asked him if he would come in “with a lot of energy.”

“I said yeah. Then, a couple seconds later Coach Dixon came over to me and told me that I was starting,” Jeter said.

Virginia Tech head coach Buzz Williams was curt regarding his thoughts on Pitt’s lineup change.

“I think that was the first game [Jeter] started,” Williams said. “That was a good decision. Obviously they saw something they thought he could exploit and he did.”

If early energy was what Pitt wanted to get out of Jeter, mission accomplished. Jeter scored 13 of the Panthers’ first 17 points, while also grabbing a pair of rebounds and a block in the first half.

Foul trouble curbed his momentum for the rest of the first half, though, as he sat until intermission after picking up his second personal with 5:11 remaining.

Jeter returned to start the second half, soaring to grab a defensive rebound in the opening seconds.

He picked up his third foul shortly after, prompting Dixon to replace him with Ryan Luther to avoid Jeter succumbing to foul trouble.

“Obviously, [the foul trouble] concerns us with the matchups early at the start of the game,” Dixon said. “And certainly, that’s what occurred. Because he got into foul trouble. So there are some disadvantages to [starting Jeter].”

Jeter wouldn’t return until 9:51 remained in the half. He was passive for a stretch, until eventually finding a rhythm, something he said was much easier to do in the first half as a starter.

“It’s just a lot easier to make shots,” Jeter said. “Transitioning from warming up — when you’re shooting shots and your legs are loose right — to walking out and playing, as opposed to sitting down and not getting in until 4 to 5 minutes into the game, which in real time is like 8 to 10 minutes.”

With just under three minutes left in the game, Jeter flashed some energy one final time. After missing an open three with the shot clock dwindling down, the forward secured his own rebound. Michael Young would find him again on that very possession, and he would work through contact in the paint to break 20 points for the first time this season.

To go with his 23 points, Jeter also hauled in seven rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 23 minutes of action.

The rebounds and points inside were big for Jeter, as he said the coaching staff criticized specific players, including himself, at practice for not being physical enough.

“A lot of people were called out, and I was one of them,” Jeter said. “So we picked up the physicality and it translated over to the game.”

Jeter elicited a few “M-V-P” chants from fans toward the end of the contest, even though there is no such award in college basketball. He even posed for a selfie as he walked off the court after some lingering members of the Oakland Zoo beckoned the night’s star.

“You heard [the Oakland Zoo] tonight,” Jeter said. “I love that. I love them, and they love me.”

Even with Jeter’s impactful output, Dixon was vague about whether or not the forward would remain a starter.

“It could be,” Dixon said. “We’ll see how it goes.”