Pitt has dropped four in a row and eight of the last ten games to sink in the Atlantic Coast Conference position.
While Saturday afternoon’s matchup against visiting Miami (6-18, 2-11 ACC) could provide a return opportunity, Panthers (14-10, 5-8) will almost certainly have to do it without top scorer Jaland Lowe.
Lowe, which average 16.5 points per match, left Tuesday’s loss of 83-63 after colliding with SMU’s Boopie Miller early in the second half. Pitt coach Jeff Capel said that the other guard “probably” will miss Saturday’s game after being evaluated for a concussion.
Pitt will look after Ishmael Leggett to pick up the slack. While Leggett is an average of 15.9 points per match, he has struggled during the last two excursions, shot below 30 percent from the field and missed all 10 attempts from 3-point intervals.
Guillermo Diaz Graham gave a Boost for Pitt on Tuesday by getting a season high 15 points.
Panthers have fallen into a decline, but Capel remains optimistic because they can turn things around.
“The most important thing now is that we have to stay together,” Capel said. “We have to keep believing. We must continue to show up with the right attitude and we have to fight. We have to fight through this. I think we have the guys in the dressing room to do so.”
Miami is in the middle of her worst season since 1993-94, the last time the program ended with one-digit victories. The hurricanes allow 84.6 points per game in conference games.
While Miami is tied at last in the ACC, it has responded to a 10-game slide by winning two of the last three-inclusive Tuesday’s victory 91-84 over Syracuse. Matthew Cleveland (32) and Jalil Bethea (21) published career heights in points, where the couple combined to make 16 out of 21 shots from the floor.
Cleveland has found a rhythm during the last seven games, an average of 26.4 points per match while he shoots 57.5 percent.
“That’s what I told our guys after the match: Let’s take our show on the road now,” said Miami Interim coach Bill Courtney. “I mean, we have gotten better. … We have shown the results. So if we can do it – again, concentrate on us getting better – we will be ok.”
-Field level media
