Perhaps it was the women’s volleyball team’s NCAA Regional Final that distracted Pitt on Saturday (the women beat Louisville to advance to the Final Four for the third straight year), or maybe it was the fact that Finals Week begins tomorrow, but the Panthers basketball team had trouble focusing on its game with Canisius yesterday. Pitt trailed by a point at the half and by seven at the 13-minute mark before rallying for an 82-71 win.
Blake Hinson continued his hot week, scoring 26 points, while Bub Carrington scored 16 and Ishmael Leggett 13 to lead the Panthers.
After falling behind, 54-47, Pitt turned it on with a 26-12 run fueled by three straight three-pointers, by Carrington, Jorge Diaz-Graham, and Hinson, and a vicious alley-oop slam by Fede Federinko. Coach Jeff Capel also switched up his defense to a zone to slow down the Canisius offense, which shot 53.1 percent for the game.
The public address announcer at the Petersen Events Center also avoided announcing the results of the volleyball game until the basketball game ended.
Pitt (7-3) will take off for Finals Week before returning to action next Saturday afternoon against South Carolina State.
