3-Pointers: Three takeaways from Pitt's blowout win over Iowa State
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Pitt clobbered sixth-seeded Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 59-41 beatdown at the Greensboro Coliseum on Friday. The Panthers improved to 24-11 on the year with the win and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday and will take on the No. 3 seed in the Midwest region, Xavier.
Surviving a grind
Pitt certainly has to bear some responsibility for how ugly Friday’s game was for viewers across the country, but they have no reason to apologize for the end result, however. Winning is a beautiful outcome for any college basketball team, whether the journey to get there was aesthetically pleasing or not.
Iowa State wanted a knock ‘em out style of game and hey they got exactly what they bargained for on Friday inside of the Greensboro Coliseum. The Cyclones did not want to get into a shooting competition with Blake Hinson, Nelly Cummings, and Greg Elliott, and that showed, and that approach was not only smart, it fit their style all season.
Iowa State came into this game averaging 68.4 points per game, good for 259th in the country. The Cyclones were also the top defensive team in the Big 12, surrendering only 62.8 per game. There is a fine line on how Iowa State likes to win basketball games, though it hasn’t been all that successful of late. The Cyclones only won three of their past ten games entering this one.
There is nothing wrong with trying to win with defense, but Iowa State forget they also had to make at least a couple of shots on Friday. But you really have to credit to Pitt, they got down with the muck Iowa State and beat them at their own game.
The Panthers played their best defensive game of the year, and they aren’t a great team on that side of the ball at all. Pitt has made ordinary offensive teams look good, especially lately, so it should be not taken lightly that Pitt held a team to 41 points in a do or die NCAA Tournament game.
Pitt’s win on Friday was not always graceful. They went nearly eight minutes without a field goal and shot 34% from the floor as a team. They had multiple players in foul trouble and only made six three-pointers for the game. It was not Pitt’s best showing, but it was still good enough to beat a team five seed lines higher than them from a league that was supposed to be the best in the country...by 19 points.
Nelly Cummings is a March player
Nelly Cummings has not always been the focal point for this Pitt team throughout the season, but he has been the catalyst for the Panthers so far in the NCAA Tournament. Cummings has led Pitt in scoring both tournament games, and when Friday started to get a little dicey, it was Cummings who sparked his team in the second half in a commanding rout of Iowa State.
Cummings scored Pitt’s first six points out of halftime, which were some important baskets at the time. Pitt had built up a stunning 22-2 advantage out of the gates, but the Panthers only held a slim 7-point margin. The Iowa State team buckled down on defense, started to show some belief, and their crowd was becoming engaged.
Cummings quieted all of that momentum with a three-pointer at the 15:15 mark. That bucket put Pitt up 36-25, and the Panthers lead never dipped below double digits after that. The senior from Midland, Pa also hit a tough layup during Pitt’s final knock blow of a 10-0 run. Cummings’ triple with a minute left put a cherry on top of a convincing win for the Panthers.
Cummings scored a team-high 13, with 11 of those coming in the second half. He scored 15 in Dayton against Mississippi State. He had previous NCAA Tournament experience prior to arriving at Pitt as well during his time at Colgate. He was a battle-tested March player before he arrived in Oakland, and he’s showing it this week. It has been a while since Pitt has played in the NCAA Tournament, but they have a roster of guys who have done it before and that experience, especially from Cummings, is proving to be the benefit many thought it could be when he committed last April.
A Sunday date with Xavier
The 2022-23 Pitt Panthers have been the team to break a lot of undesirable streaks for this program and that run continued on Friday. Jeff Capel’s squad became the first Pitt team to win two NCAA Tournament games in the same season since the 2009 team led by DeJuan Blair advanced to the Elite 8.
Of course, one of the wins for Pitt this year was in the First Four against Mississippi State, meaning the Panthers will need to win on Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2009. Given all that this Pitt team has accomplished and the unlikelihood of it all, who can really bet against them at this point of taking down another 'first since' moment?
Standing in Pitt’s way with a date in the second weekend is an old foe, and also an old friend.
Pitt and Xavier have had some clashes in the NCAA Tournament in the past, and will renew that March rivalry on Sunday at the Greensboro Coliseum. Pitt secured a dramatic Sweet 16 win over the Musketeers in 2009 thanks to a memorable LeVance Fields step back three.
The following year Xavier ended Pitt’s season in the second round.
In that 2009 game Xavier was coached by former Pitt point guard, Sean Miller. After a much maligned career in Arizona, Miller is back at the helm of Xavier and has his team among the best in the country in his first season back in Cincinnati.
There has seemingly always been a seemingly tumultuous relationship between Miller and Pitt since he left town. Perhaps Pitt having two separate head coach openings in the past decade and him not showing interest (or did he?) either time may have something to do with that.
The NCAA Tournament always seems throws out storyline type matchups in the second and third rounds, maybe not guaranteed games, but chances for some buzz worthy games.
Pitt and Sean Miller squaring off checks that box, and you can spot a couple of those on the horizon in the next round, too, should the Panthers advance.