Jeff Capel Pleased with Pitt Frontcourt Despite Struggles

Jeff Capel praised the efforts of the Pitt Panthers' frontcourt after a dominating performance over South Carolina State.

PITTSBURGH -- While the Pitt Panthers' frontcourt has dealt with inconsistency over the course of the season thus far, Jeff Capel was encouraged by the group's play in their win over South Carolina State. 

Pitt's defensive efforts down low against a scrappy Bulldogs team played a huge part in its winning effort. The Panthers held South Carolina State to 28.1 shooting from the field and 16 points in the paint to go with eight blocks. Pitt held its own on the glass as well, coming away with a 40-to-36 advantage in the rebounding battle. 

Furthermore, the Panthers also found ways to gain an advantage inside on the offensive side of the ball. They finished with 44 points in the paint and 13 offensive rebounds that translated to 17 second-chance points. 

Guillermo Diaz Graham and William Jeffress provided the frontcourt with a jolt in their first game as members of the starting lineup, particularly on defense. Federiko Federiko and Zack Austin, who were benched as a result, both responded well to the move and helped command the second unit with a combined 20 points and 10 rebounds in just 20 minutes. 

Capel lauded Austin and Federiko's collective effort in the second half after challenging them to step up and mentioned that both are necessary components of Pitt's frontcourt and roster as a whole.

"I’m also really proud of Zack Austin and Federiko, because they didn’t play as well in the first half and I tried to challenge them both at halftime and I thought they both played with so much force and the force that’s required to be good platers and they’re both really good players and we need them and they were terrific in the second half," Capel stated.

Capel mentioned that he was happy with the frontcourt's performance and believes the unit has a number of quality options who will continue to grow as the year progresses. 

"We can be better, but we’ve shown in spurts that they’re good and we just need to become consistently good with (Guillermo), Federiko, Blake, and Will," Capel said. "Zack can play down there, Jorge at times. I think we have a lot of really good options and we’re going to continue to get better."

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