MORGANTOWN, W.Va — The Pitt Panthers laid claim to an 80-63 win over West Virginia on Wednesday night in the 190th renewal of the Backyard Brawl. Pitt played at an offensive pace that West Virginia could not keep up with and it improved to 6-3 on the season with a key road victory. What stood out most from the game? Here are my three biggest takeaways.
Hinson’s historic game
It was the Blake Hinson show inside the WVU Coliseum on Wednesday night. The Panthers’ star forward had the hot hand from the moment he stepped on the floor and he turned that marksmanship into a historic performance.
Hinson finished with a career-high 29 points and connected on nine three-pointers, which set a record for single game makes in Pitt history. The previous record of eight, was one Hinson tied last season. He is the team’s big shot taker, and also maker, and it has been that way for a while.
Hinson was a key piece in Pitt’s run to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season, but returned for his final year to improve his game to make a run at playing in the NBA. He entered this season as the focal point of Pitt’s offensive game plan and through nine games he has lived up to those expectations.
Hinson is now averaging 21.4 points per game and has connected on 39 three-pointers, which leads the country. He has now scored 20 or more points in three straight games and done it five times on the season. The Panthers’ senior forward is playing like an all-conference type player, which is what this team needs, but it was also the expectation for him heading into this year. Hinson, so far, has been holding up his end of the bargain with elite scoring. That is what this team asks of him and he is delivering.
In order for this team to have a productive season, it will need all of its parts clicking. Hinson’s leadership is certainly factored into making that happen, so while this was not a vintage West Virginia team, it was still a rivalry win on the road. More importantly it was a win when the team needed one. Leaders have the ability to stop losing streaks. Hinson did that.
Bench rises to the occasion
“I didn’t think our bench played particularly well. We have to be better there. And there are good players there. I thought we had some effort plays, but we have to get more from our bench when we go to it, whoever it is on the bench.”
That is a quote from Pitt head coach Jeff Capel. He said that after Pitt lost 79-70 to Clemson on Sunday in a game where his bench produced zero points. Jorge Diaz Graham did not even see any action. It was a low point early on in this season collectively for that group.
So of course, Pitt’s bench outscores West Virginia 25-3 three days later in a complete turn of events. Guillermo Diaz Graham led the group with 15 points and was 6-of-7 from the field, including 3-of-4 from three-point range. Jorge was the first player to check in against West Virginia and produced three points, six rebounds, and two assists. The twins connected for a nice give and go finished off by a Guillermo dunk during a big Pitt run in the second half.
Those were the kind of plays we expected to see those two make this season and it’s been sporadic at best. On Wednesday, the four-man bench was clicking as well as it has all season and it showed how dangerous this team can be when everyone is contributing.
The bench got pressed into action early with very little choice, either. Ishmael Leggett had two early fouls and had to sit almost the entire first half. Pitt adapted. Jorge Diaz Graham gave Pitt some added length, Jaland Lowe played poised minutes and went straight to the basket, and perhaps the unsung hero out of all of them was William Jeffress.
Well, maybe not unsung. At the postgame press conference Pitt brought out Hinson along with Capel, as expected, but Jeffress joined them. It’s not often a guy who only scored one point can make such an impact, but Jeffress did. He grabbed a team-high nine rebounds and was on the floor basically the entire second half in favor of starter Zack Austin. Jeffress played 18 minutes in the second half and Austin only saw two minutes of action.
Why? It was the defense of Jeffress, plain and simple. West Virginia forward Quinn Slazinski ate up Pitt in the first half with 16 points and got to the line for six foul shots.
In the second half, he scored only six points, with four coming around the three-minute mark, when Pitt had the game well in hand. Jeffress was a big part in keeping him isolated and a non-factor.
The bench here has a lot of potential, but it has been inconsistent. The Diaz Graham twins are unique players for their size, Lowe looks like a promising young guard, and Jeffress is a talented guy accepting of more of a defensive role. This can be a group that helps this team and Wednesday's performance showed that.
Time for a lineup switch?
Jeff Capel has not shown any signs of straying away from the same starting five he has been using all season. It has been Bub Carrington and Leggett at guards, Hinson and Austin on the wings, with Federiko Federiko manning the middle.
There have been games, like Wednesday, where the game dictates a guy who is coming off the bench grabbing starter-like minutes. Fouls can force your hand, but it is also early in the season and while Capel has not changed the starting five, it’s obvious he is trying different combinations for long durations to see what works.
There is certainly one that might be worth exploring further.
Federiko just looks like he is in a slump right now and I don’t know how else to describe it. Pitt just got through a five-game stretch against power-five competition and the numbers aren’t strong. He grabbed 20 points and 19 rebounds in those five games and has mostly been a non-factor from a production standpoint.
His offense is what it has always been: lobs, rim-running, offensive rebounds, hustling. That’s his game. He also provides shot blocking and good post defense, or at least better than the other big men on the team. His value is not always measured with statistics per se. Still, this team has had some shaky offensive performances of late and Federiko just is not much of an offensive threat for how this team plays. His energy might play well off the bench.
I think this team needs weapons to dish to when Bub Carrington and Jaland Lowe are trying to create off the dribble and Guillermo Diaz Graham just fits that profile more. He scored 15 on Wednesday off the bench and had two more double-digit scoring games earlier in the year. If given the extended minutes, his production would increase. It’s still a small sample size, but he’s shooting 38% from three. Guillermo is also a decent free throw shooter, whereas Federiko has been a liability.
Capel has done some offense/defense with those two late in games, but I think the overall upside is with Diaz Graham. Pitt may lose some strength in interior defense, but the bonus of added offense should probably make up for it.
