The Pitt Panthers enter tonight's game against Boston College riding a five-game winning streak. Pitt has had three separate five-game winning streaks this season, but has yet to win six in a row, and the Panthers will look to change that tonight.
Boston College enters this game with a 12-14 record and a 6-9 mark in ACC play. The Eagles are under the direction of second year head coach Earl Grant. Boston College has a veteran lineup led by 7'0" center Quinten Post. The big man from The Netherlands is having a superb senior season and has been one of the best interior players in the ACC. He is averaging 16.8 points per game and 6.8 rebounds. The Eagles also feature veteran guard Makai Ashton-Langford, who pours in 12.4 points per contest and leads the team with 2.8 assists a game.
The Eagles have not had a successful season, but they have proven to be a difficult team for some during ACC play. Boston College has pulled off recent upsets over the likes of Clemson and Virginia Tech, but the team is coming off of a 30-point loss to NC State over the weekend.
The Panthers have risen all the way to the top spot of the ACC standings with three weeks left in the season. Despite being on a current five-game winning streak and an extended 17-4 stretch since their 1-3 start, Jeff Capel's team still can't crack the Top 25 rankings. Can Pitt make it six in a row? The Panther-Lair.com staff previews tonight's game.
Stephen Gertz (17-8): Another must win game for the Pittsburgh Panthers that I believe they are going to win. The Boston Eagles have some impressive victories of late: They beat the Clemson Tigers at home and also beat the Virginia Tech Hokies on the road last week. However, they lost to the NC State Wolfpack and Syracuse Orange at home by double-digits. Translation: You cannot take this inconsistent team lightly. Working in Pitt's favor is the fact that Boston College does not shoot or defend against three-pointers very well. The Eagles are among the worst teams in the nation in both categories. But they do not allow opposing teams to get to the free throw line and protect the rim fairly well. The Panthers cannot allow a player with a last name containing "Langford" to get going. Both contributed heavily in beating Pitt two out of their three meetings last year. For the players still on the roster, I can see them playing with a chip on their shoulder. This is a much different team than a year ago. One capable of exploiting BC's weaknesses and collectively doing a better job of defending the key pieces on Boston College.
Prediction: Pitt 77, Boston College 66
Houston Wilson (17-8): Pitt has a very good chance off adding a win tonight at home against Boston College. BC has still struggled this year but has shown some improvement in Earl Grants second year. I do think this game will be closer than some people might think. Grant will have his guys ready and Quinten Post is one of the best scorers in the league. At the end of the day, Pitt should be okay as they continue to stay in first place off the ACC.
Prediction: Pitt 78, Boston College 70.
Matt Steinbrink (12-13): You can talk yourself into just about any conference game being a trap game or a challenge. A 9:00 tip in the middle of February may not be the most exciting game, but Pitt has been good at home and their roster of older players has kept this group focused. With Miami's win over North Carolina last night and Virginia right on Pitt's heels, the Panthers cannot afford to drop any gimme games. The spread of this game opened at 9 and that is probably spot on in my opinion. This Boston College team has a few quality players but they lack a true point guard and do not shoot the ball well. Quinten Post is a lot to handle inside but if there is one spot that this staff wants to worry about, it would be an opposing center. For one, the position is almost extinct in the college game and most coaches are fine giving up contested twos now after analytical advancement. The other reason is that Federiko Federiko is developing into an all around legitimate center that has grown into one of the best interior defenders in the ACC. So as long as he makes post work for his points and the Panthers don't let multiple Eagles catch rhythm, they should be fine.
Prediction: Pitt 81, Boston College 70
Jim Hammett (17-8): One of the better qualities of this Pitt team is that they just keep playing. Jeff Capel has done a good job of keeping this team focused for much of the season, so while Pitt fans may be creating a lot of noise about not being ranked, I believe the team will show up and play their game and let that do the talking. Boston College is not a very good team, but they do have some good pieces and they are capable of mucking up this game. I just think the way Pitt has been playing, especially at home, will lead the Panthers to an easy victory. Pitt has been shooting the ball very well playing in front of the Oakland Zoo. The Panthers have 44 made three-pointers in their last three home games, and I expect another big night tonight.
Prediction: Pitt 83, Boston College 66
Chris Peak (18-7): Pitt just keeps taking care of business. The Panthers did it against Louisville last Tuesday at home and on Saturday at Florida State, and I think they do it again tonight when they host Boston College. The Eagles most recently got pummeled by N.C. State 92-62 in a game that saw the Wolfpack shoot 15-of-30 from three; N.C. State only averages 8.6 made three-point field goals per game, so the Wolfpack nearly doubled-up on their season numbers against the Eagles. Boston College is at the bottom of the ACC in three-point field goal percentage defense, and the only team in the conference that has allowed more three-pointers than the Eagles this season is Florida State. B.C. big man Quinten Post is a concern; he had 20 points in the loss to N.C. State, but there isn’t much else to be concerned about, and I’m interested to see how Federiko Federiko and Guillermo Diaz Graham handle that challenge. Even if Post goes off, though, I think Pitt keeps rolling.
Prediction: Pitt 88, Boston College 70
