Pitt's focus is to be 'consumed by winning' after rally over North Carolina

Dec 30, 2022 • 5:36 pm

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Jeff Capel had to burn Pitt's first timeout just four minutes into their contest against North Carolina Friday at the Petersen Events Center. The Tar Heels were shooting from three, controlling the boards and creating open shots.

And Pitt, who hadn't played in 10 days, was flat.

“I wouldn’t say I anticipated that, but we hadn’t competed," Capel said. "I knew it was going to take a little bit from us to get back into that. As much as we practiced and tried to simulate, it’s hard to simulate their speed or [forward Armando] Bacot.”

It was a potentially grim scenario. It turned into perhaps the most impressive win of the season.

Despite trailing for almost the entirety of the first 35 minutes of the game, Pitt never let the deficit reach double-digits, and behind a 31 point explosion from Jamarius Burton, they were able to comeback and pull off the upset over the No. 25 team in the country, 76-74.

“We fought for 40 minutes," Capel said. "We knew they were playing really, really well right now. They’re as talented as any team in the country.

Capel took a few seconds to think about what to say next.

"But we fought.”

Continuing to fight after falling down early is half of the equation. The other half is improving. And they definitely got better as the game progressed.

After allowing 13 field goals on North Carolina's first 24 shots, the Tar Heels were just 9-for-27 from the floor in the second half. After allowing 11 second chance points in the first half, UNC had just two points in the second. Those 11 second chance points came from six offensive rebounds, including five from Bacot. In the second half, the Tar Heels had just two offensive boards, and Bacot was shut out.

All that came as Pitt struggled to shoot, especially from three. They started 2-for-17 from behind the arc, but found success in the paint. They tallied 42 points there while continuing to take the open shots. Eventually, it worked.

“We just tried to stay even-keeled, stay locked in," Burton said. "Understand there’s other ways to win the basketball game besides knocking down threes, and for us, that was locking in on the scouting report and continuing to fight for one another.”

And this wasn't against a weak offensive team. Caleb Love was leading the ACC in points coming into the game, but only got seven points. Bacot may have had 22 points, but he tapered off toward the end of his 37 minutes and the big man didn't contribute much down the stretch.

For a team that had fallen apart defensively on several occasions early in the year, they stood tough, even as the offense struggled.

The key to that success? As Blake Hinson put it, "communicating. That's going to be our word all year."

“That’s a sign of maturity for our group, because in the past, maybe we would have wilted," Capel said. "Earlier this year, maybe we would have wilted. We kept fighting, we stayed together, and we were able to go on some runs of our own.”

Communicating. Continuing to fight. Pitt did what Capel and the staff had been preaching all season. That might make this win more important than just one where they improve to 3-0 in the ACC.

It could be a sign of what is being built.

“That’s the key," Capel said. "It’s just everyone being consumed with winning… Guys cheer for each, they root for each other, they play for each other. If we can continue to do that, then hopefully we can continue to have some success.”

PITT ATHLETICS

Blake Hinson drives to the net.

MORE FROM THE GAME

• Burton's 31 points were a career-best, which included shooting 14-of-17 from the field. That included a three possession sequence from 4:01 to 2:55 where he nailed three straight from the field and a field goal to take Pitt from being down 62-60 to up 67-62.

“We rode him. He carried us.," Capel said.

• As big as Hinson was in the final minutes and Burton was all game, the most important sequence of the game, according to Capel, came from Nike Sibande. Down six with eight minutes to play, Sibande nailed a jumper and then fed Nelly Cummings for a three on the next possession to get Pitt back to within one.

“They got the crowd into it, got us going," Capel said.

Sibande did not play much in Pitt's win over Syracuse last week, but Capel was confident he could come through when given an opportunity.

“I knew that he would be important for us today," Capel said. "His energy, drive and his passion, his finishing, his passing, all of those things, were huge plays for us.”

• Stopping North Carolina in transition was key in this one. The Tar Heels excel in that area and Pitt plays almost exclusively man defense. Pitt made sure to stay in front and only allowed six fast break points on the afternoon.

"The emphasis started in practice for us," Burton said. "We knew they were a transition team. We knew how dangerous they were in the open floor. So for us, it was just getting back, identifying the man and understanding that you might not have your guy in transition, but getting on somebody is very important for us. We just tried to make sure we got back and made them see multiple bodies.”

• There was a late scare, where Pitt's four-point lead with 5.8 seconds remaining almost evaporated. The Tar Heels were able to steal one inbound pass and get a quick bucket, forcing Pitt to try again with 2.8 second remaining. The next inbound again was close, but after a review, Pitt was spared another possession change.

“That was very tense," Capel said. "We have to be better in that situation.”

• Cool moment after the game: Some fans stayed at the Petersen Events Center to watch the football game on the scoreboard. When Burton walked out to head home, he got a big round of applause from those still in attendance.

THE HIGHLIGHTS