The story: Pitt and Ohio State played a thriller in Columbus, and the Panthers found a way to come out on top. Senior forward Zack Austin connected on a three-pointer with .04 seconds remaining to propel Pitt to an improbable 91-90 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Austin scored 16 points in the game, on the strength of five made triples.
The Panthers overcame a ridiculous offensive effort by Ohio State and erased a nine-point halftime deficit to stun the Buckeyes on their home court. Trailing 48-39 at the break, Pitt outscored Ohio State 52-42 over the final 25 minutes and improved to 7-1 on the year with the win and made a statement with the result.
Pitt leaned heavily on its veteran backcourt, as Jaland Lowe and Ishmael Leggett combined to score 49 of Pitt’s 91 points. Lowe totaled a game-high 28 points, including 16 after halftime. The talented sophomore guard managed to draw two fouls on Ohio State while attempting a three-pointer. The usually calm Lowe was clutch at the line, going 10-for-11 for the game.
The Panthers received some surprising contributions, but none bigger than the 12 points and four rebounds from redshirt freshman forward Papa Amadou Kante, who played 17 minutes after not seeing any action in the Greenbrier Tip-Off last weekend.
Game MVP: Jaland Lowe
Look, there were plenty of heroes in this game, but Pitt has zero chance of winning without Jaland Lowe. Many believe him to be one of the best point guards in the country, and he lived up to that billing on Friday. Lowe finished with a career-high 28 points to lead all scorers, along with four rebounds and four assists. He was a near-perfect 10-11 from the free throw line and was simply a menace for Ohio State to try to defend off the dribble. Lowe was 0-5 from three-point range for the game, but two of his attempts drew fouls which led to some precious free throws when the clock was not moving, to allow Pitt's comeback.
Unsung hero: Zack Austin
I don’t think anyone really expected Zack Austin to a three-point specialist off the bench for this team, but he sure was today. Austin made 5-of-8 for the game, including the huge one in the final seconds, which was beyond NBA range as well. Austin added five rebounds and two steals in 37 minutes of action. Many figured he would get the starting nod today, but he maintained his sixth man role and looked pretty comfortable in doing so.
Turning point: The 15-0 run in the second half
Ohio State was leading 57-46 with 16 minutes left in the game. The Panthers weren’t necessarily playing bad offense, but if there was any hope to have a comeback, it needed to start defensively. Ohio State went nearly eight minutes without a made basket after a scorching hot first half, and during that stretch, Pitt erased an 11-point deficit and took a 61-57 advantage around the 10 minute mark.
This was the sequence that changed the game. O)bviously Ohio State regained the lead, and it went to overtime, but they needed a stretch to get back into the game, and delivered on that. Part of it was Ohio State coming back down to earth shooting the ball, but the Panthers forced seven second half turnovers and started to get in better defensive rotations, simply by being more active.
Stacking quality wins
Ohio State looks poised to be an NCAA Tournament team, so going into Columbus and getting one on their floor was big for Pitt. It’s early, but in Pitt’s 7-1 start, the team has collected wins over Big 10, Big 12, and SEC opponents to date. Pitt’s mantra or slogan this season is to ‘leave no doubt’ and a big part of that was start the season better than the previous two years, and it’s clear this team has been accomplishing its mission to date.
Out of nowhere
With the injury to Damian Dunn, there was a lot of talk about certain players needing to step up in his absence. Most of the conversations were not centered around Papa Amadou Kante, but he somewhat stole the show on Friday pretty much to everyone’s surprise.
In the plus/minus department, he led Pitt with a +14 when he was in the game. After not seeing action for two games, he was forced into playing due to foul trouble from Cam Corhen and an injury to Guillermo Diaz Graham. Not only did he eat minutes, he thrived with this extended look. Amadou Kante’s defense on hedging ball screens bumped Ohio State out of rhythm. He also collected four offensive rebounds, and simply played with spark. It can’t be dismissed his 6-of-9 free throw shooting loomed large as well. I’m not sure if Pitt caught lightning in a bottle today, but that’s an intriguing performance from the former four-star.
Crashing the glass
Pitt out-rebounded Ohio State 36-29, but did a lot of good work on the offensive glass. The Panthers grabbed 16 offensive rebounds, and scored 20 second chance points because of it. Pitt was led in the rebounding department by none other than 6’3” senior guard Ish Leggett.
The top 25 awaits
Pitt cracked the Coaches Poll this week at No. 25 and was just on the outside looking in for the AP Poll with the second most votes outside the rankings. That should change this week with the Panthers poised break into the AP poll for the first time this season.
Foul shooting contest
The whistles were abundance in this one, with the two teams combining to attempt 59 free throws. It became even more stingy in the overtime frame. Ohio State only made one basket in overtime, but lived off of 10 made free throws. The Panthers made three shots in the extra period, but also relied on seven made shots at the line.
Up next: Wednesday 12/4 @No. 25 Mississippi State
Pitt is currently in a five-game stretch against power-conference opponents. So far, the Panthers are 2-1 in those games, and will have another tough challenge on Wednesday. Pitt will be in Starkville to take on undefeated and No. 25 Mississippi State as part of the SEC-ACC Challenge.
The Bulldogs and Panthers last met two seasons ago, as Pitt outlasted Mississippi State, 60-59, in the First Four of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
