Pitt Suffers Blowout to No. 4 Duke

The Pitt Panthers suffered their a blowout to No. 4 Duke.

Dominic Campbell | Jan 7, 2025

Jan 7, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Tyrese Proctor (5) and Pittsburgh Panthers guard Jaland Lowe (15) battle for a loose ball during the first half at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images / Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

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Pittsburgh Panthers

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers faced their best opponent of the season in No. 4 Duke and struggled throughout their road matchup, losing in a blowout, 76-47.

Pitt (12-3 overall, 3-1 ACC) dropped their first ACC game of the season in the defeat to the Blue Devisl (13-2 overall, 5-0 ACC), as they cameback in a variety of ways to defeat Virginia Tech on the road on Dec. 7 and both Cal on New Year's Day and Stanford on Jan. 4 at home.

It also ended a five-game winning streak for Pitt, as they blewout both Eastern Kentucky, 96-56 on Dec. 11 and Sam Houston, 110-78 on Dec. 21 at home.

Duke came out with an 8-3 run, thanks to both guards in junior Tyrese Proctor and graduate student Sion James each hitting a 3-pointer and freshman center Khaman Maluach scoring a jumper.

Pitt took advantage of Duke shooting 2-for-14 and responded with an 11-5 run over the next 8:35, to take a 14-13 lead at the 9:17 mark.

Redshirt senior forward Zack Austin hit a 3-pointer and made two free throws to lead the Panthers with five points, while freshman guard Brandin "Beebah" Cummings made two free throws, junior forward Cam Corhen got a dunk and sophomore guard Jaland Lowe made a layup.

The Blue Devils then went on a 10-0 over two and-a-half mintues, forcing Panthers head coach Jeff Capel to take a timeout. Graduate forward Mason Gillis led the Blue Devils with five points, making a 3-pointer and a layup.

Junior forward Jorge Diaz Graham ended the scoreless drought for Pitt with a 3-pointer, but Duke freshman/forward Kon Knueppel hit two 3-pointers himself on wide open opportunities. Senior guard Ishmael Leggett made a layup and Corhen hit a jumper to trim the deficit for Pitt to 29-21 at the under-four media timeout.

Duke and Pitt both struggled from the floor late in the first half. Corhen scored three points on a dunk and a free throw for Duke, while freshman forward/guard Cooper Flagg made a layup and Knueppel made two free throws, giving them a 34-24 lead at halftime.

Lowe and Leggett struggled for Pitt in the first half, with Lowe shooting 1-for-5 and Leggett going for 1-for-8, shooting a combined 2-for-13 and scoring just four points.

This also marked the least amount of points the Panthers scored in the first half all sesaon, as they shot 8-for-26 from the field, 30.8%.

Flagg who missed a good portion of the first half after picking up two early fouls, picked up his third foul early in the second half.

Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer kept him on, which allowed Flagg to make two spectacular dunks, including the first one on Panthers junior forward Guillermo Diaz Graham, converting the and-one opportunity aftewards, keeping them with a double-digit lead.

COOPER. FLAGG. 🤯

📺 ESPN x @DukeMBB pic.twitter.com/WEweJj31z8
— ACC Men's Basketball (@accmbb) January 8, 2025

Pitt got graduate student Damian Dunn back for this matchup, as he missed the past seven games after undergoing surgery on his right thumb following an injury in the loss to then ranked No. 19Wisconsin at the Greenbrier Tip-Off in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. on Nov. 24.

Dunn would hit a 3-pointer and a mid-range jumper for the Panthers, but the Blue Devils continued to stay in the lead, as Knueppel made a 3-pointer and a layup, while James got a layup and Flagg made another dunk, keeping them in the lead, 52-36 at the under-12 media timeout.

Pitt would respond by outscoring Duke 11-3 over a three-minute period, forcing Scheyer to call a timeout. Dunn made a layup, Lowe hit from deep, Corhen got another dunk and then Cummings made back-to-back layups on the fast break, cutting the deficit to 58-47.

The Blue Devils ended the Panthers chance at making a late comeback, as they went on an 18-0 run to end the game. Maluach made two free throws and a dunk, Flagg made two free throws and a layup and junior guard Tyrese Proctor made two 3-pointers, two free throws and a layup.

Pitt went scoreless for the final eight minutes of the game and missed their final 11 shots. The referees also assessed a flagrant two foul to Dunn on Proctor, ejecting him from the game in the final minute.

Pitt will try to bounce back as they face Louisville at home for a noon tip-off on Jan. 11.

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Published Jan 7, 2025