The media in Pittsburgh, after all but declaring the game decided before it started, suddenly had to rewrite their copy. The story now was Pitt’s first loss at the Pete. The first time in quite a while when no one seemed able to step up in the game. The numbers said it all.
It was Pitt’s worst offensive performance in more than 22 years. The 46 points scored represented the fewest scored in a game since a 52-46 double-overtime loss at Penn State in 1982.
The Panthers shot a season-low 30.9 percent from the field. They were 17 for 55, 3 for 16 from 3-point range and 9 for 17 from the free-throw line. They were 1 for 9 from behind the arc and 7 for 13 from the free-throw line after halftime, when they scored 24 points in the final 25 minutes.
This time, Syracuse couldn’t merely be shoved around and cowed. They met Pitt’s physical play and fought threw it.
So the columnists at the game can either take what happened and try to keep some perspective.
Before panic breaks out in the wake of such a revelation, consider:
Pitt was about as bad as it could have been and still came within a free throw of winning in regulation.
Chevy Troutman, Chris Taft and Jaron Brown repeatedly missed on easy attempts from underneath in the game’s opening minutes.
Julius Page didn’t make a three-pointer until just 46 seconds remained in the second half, and the Panthers finished a horrific 3 for 16 from beyond the arc.
Troutman, Taft and to a lesser extent Mark McCarroll were abused by Syracuse forward Hakim Warrick.
Carl Krauser fouled out.
And Pitt was a not-good-enough 9 for 17 from the foul line.
And still it took a missed free throw by Troutman with three seconds left for Syracuse to survive in overtime.
That makes Pitt mortal, but not necessarily more vulnerable than anyone else.
Even in defeat, the defense and rebounding showed up for the most part, and that’s what Pitt depends upon night in and night out.
The Panthers’ best hope in the upcoming tournaments is that defense and rebounding continue to be staples of their game.
Taking their chances with the rest and living with the results has put them in a position to contend with anyone.
On the other hand, you can start to panic
March isn’t always about the highest seeds. It’s about the teams that are playing their best.
That’s what you should be worried about.
It’s hard to imagine Pitt playing worse than it did at Georgetown Tuesday night when it committed 23 turnovers and made just 4 of 15 3-point shots. It won by 10 points but only because the Hoyas were the opponent. They lost to St. John’s, for goodness sake, just six days earlier.
But Pitt was worse in a 49-46 overtime loss to Syracuse. It protected the ball better, but its shooting was worse. Syracuse dared it to shoot outside by playing a collapsing 2-3 zone defense, but the Pitt players weren’t up to the challenge. Its three guards — Carl Krauser, Julius Page and Jaron Brown — combined to shoot 9 for 34. As a team, it was 3 of 16 shooting 3s.
That was much more troubling than the end of Pitt’s remarkable 34-game run at the Petersen Events Center.
This isn’t the time of the year to struggle. Not with the NCAA tournament barely two weeks away.
There really isn’t any time to linger over this loss. Pitt played a horrible week of basketball and came away 1-1. They are still in position for a #1 seed if they win the last two and make it to the Big East Championship game. The important thing for Pitt is to get ready for Providence. Pitt shouldn’t necessarily forget this game. They need to use it as motivation. To remind themselves that they aren’t going to win any games just by showing up. They have to play and play smart.
