ATLANTA, Georgia — While any lead at the half isn’t something to turn away, following Pitt’s first 20 minutes of action Saturday afternoon Jeff Capel surely felt his team was capable of more.
Once again, there were issues on the glass, with Georgia Tech leading the rebound battle 23-17. There were also problems on the perimeter, where Pitt allowed the opposition to sink eight first-half 3-pointers. Both figures indicated that without change, a third loss could be on the horizon.
However, out of the locker room for the second half, Capel’s squad responded.
A strong second-half effort on the defensive end helped the Panthers (12-6, 5-2) put their two-game losing skid to bed, coming out on top 71-60 over the Yellow Jackets (8-9, 1-6) in ACC competition.
“We don’t take winning for granted, especially on the road,” Capel said following his team’s victory. “It’s very hard to win — period. We were playing a team that I think is a good team, it’s better than its record.”
With the majority of the starting lineup experiencing an off-night, it was Nike Sibande’s performance off the bench that allowed Pitt to remain in control for the majority of the game. The veteran guard led Pitt in scoring, tallying a season-best 21 points.
“It felt good,” Sibande said when asked about the win. “Any win is gonna feel good. We know we have to keep going and focus on what’s next.”
Jamarius Burton, Blake Hinson and Nelly Cummings each finished the day scoring in double-figures, tallying 19, 13 and 11 points, respectively. Deebo Smith led Georgia Tech with 15 points.
Key stat: Once again, the Panthers had some troubles under the hoop, losing the rebound battle 40-35. Georgia Tech did a notably good job at creating second chances against the Panthers, hauling in 14 offensive rebounds in the loss.
“They really did a great job on offensive rebounding in the first half,” Capel said. “I think they got four or five 3-pointers off offensive rebounds. We have to do a better job there. We were a little bit better in the second half, we only gave up six.”
Yet, the numbers down low weren’t all bad. Pitt was much better at getting points close to the basket Saturday, outscoring the Yellow Jackets 30-16 in the paint.
“We still probably missed about six layups,” Capel said. “That’s the thing – we have to do a better job there. We knew [Georgia Tech] would switch defenses up. We also knew that at certain times, with their ball screen coverage, they switch. If you watched our game against Duke, that’s what Duke did in the second half.
“I thought against Duke, we went stagnant and just tried to go one-on-one. Today, we moved the basketball a little better. We drove it to get off of it, to make plays instead of driving in just to score. We got second and third penetration, which was why we were able to get good looks.”
Quotable: Just before the start of the second half, Capel had decided it was time to make a change to his starting lineup. With shooting guard Greg Elliott – who ended the game with just five points – once again having a cold afternoon from the floor, Capel informed Sibande that he’d be starting in Elliott’s place to begin the final 20 minutes.
To Capel’s surprise, Sibande passed up the opportunity. He instead told his head coach to stick with Elliott.
“Our guys have been really good teammates all year,” Capel said. “He was selfless, he was making plays. It was one of the coolest things I’ve seen probably since I’ve been a coach.”
Sibande says his decision came down to one thing — getting a victory.
“I just want to win at the end of the day,” Sibande said. “It’s not about starting, it’s not about none of that; it’s about winning. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about. I’ve been in my role, I’ve accepted my role and I’m trying to do the best I can in my role.”
Up next: The Panthers will wrap up a three-game road stint Wednesday, Jan. 18, as they face ACC foe Louisville. The contest is scheduled to tip-off at 7 p.m. and will be televised on the ACC Network.
The Cardinals (2-16, 0-5) continue to struggle this season, falling to North Carolina in their most recent contest Saturday by a final of 80-59. Louisville will enter its battle against Pitt Wednesday sitting alone at the bottom of the ACC standings.
Noah Hiles: nhiles@post-gazette.com and Twitter @_NoahHiles
First Published: January 14, 2023, 10:15 p.m.
Updated: January 15, 2023, 12:27 p.m.