Brandin Cummings came off the bench for an historic performance and Pitt blasted off into the stratosphere in the final 14 minutes for a 96-56 win over Eastern Kentucky on Wednesday night at the Petersen Events Center.
The teams: Pitt (9-2 overall, 1-0 ACC, No. 31 KenPom) vs. No. 211 Eastern Kentucky (5-4 overall, No. 211 KenPom)
Top performers:
Brandin Cummings: 30 points, 10/13 FG, 6/8 3FG, 1 rebound, 1 steal
Zack Austin: 18 points, 6/10 FG, 2/3 3FG, 4/4 FT, 3 blocks
Ishmael Leggett: 17 points, 6/8 FG, 5/7 FT, 6 rebounds, 2 steals
Jaland Lowe: 11 points, 12 assists
The breakout game: Cummings put in an all-time performance Wednesday night. He got on the court early when Jaland Lowe picked up two fouls in the first two minutes and made an immediate impact, draining his first three shots plus a trio of free throws to account for all of Pitt’s first 12 points in the game.
Cummings continued the scoring when he bounced back from his first miss by making his next five attempts. Then, after two more misses, Cummings hit his final two shots to reach 30 points.
The record books: Cummings’ performance on Wednesday night was the sixth time in Pitt history that a freshman scored at least 30 points in a game (incidentally, all six of those have happened with Jeff Capel as head coach). Cummings also set the Pitt record for bench scoring by a freshman. His 10 made field goals tied for the fifth-most by a freshman in a game and his six made three’s tied for the second-most by a freshman.
A close one for 26 minutes: Pitt was favored to beat Eastern Kentucky by nearly 20 points, but the Colonels kept things much closer than anyone expected, trailing by three at halftime and cutting Pitt’s lead to six with 14 minutes left to play. But at that point, the Panthers went on a run, making seven of their next 10 shots and outscoring EKU 23-0 over the next five minutes and change to build a 29-point lead and put the game out of reach.
An awe-inspiring finish: Eastern Kentucky finally made a few baskets to cut Pitt’s run, but the Panthers responded by going on a torrid pace to close the game, hitting 9-of-10 from the floor in the final 6:17. It all amounted to a 46-12 run over the final 14 minutes of the game.
Hiding in plain sight: Cummings’ breakout game overshadowed everything else that happened Wednesday night, but it wasn’t the only notable development from the game. Zack Austin put up 18 points on a tidy 6-of-10 shooting and Jaland Lowe bounced back from his foul trouble to record his second double-double of the season and the third of his career. Most of that production came in the second half, as Lowe had 11 points and nine assists after halftime.
EKU’s strengths: EKU came into the game averaging 16.7 turnovers forced per game (No. 18 nationally) and 16.6 offensive rebound per game (No. 2 nationally), and the Colonels lived up to it in the first half, forcing seven turnovers and collecting six offensive rebounds. They turned those into points, too, scoring 11 points off turnovers and 14 second-chance points before halftime.
Pitt’s response: Not surprisingly, Pitt created its separation by limiting Eastern Kentucky in those two areas. During the 23-0 run in the second half, EKU only collected two offensive rebounds while missing nine shots. Similarly, the Panthers committed just three turnovers in the second half.
For the Colonels, all of that translated to just two points off turnovers and four second-chance points, which allowed Pitt to pull away.
Three-point shooting: The other thing Eastern Kentucky does a lot is shoot three’s, and the Colonels showed that with 28 attempts from beyond the arc. In the first half, that worked, as EKU shot 6-of-12 from three. In the second half, though, it didn’t go quite as well; the Colonels made just 1-of-16 from deep after halftime.
The center question: While Pitt’s guards and wings were excelling, the center position continued to be an issue.
Guillermo Diaz Graham’s struggles continued; the junior forward didn’t score on Wednesday night, missing all four of his shots and offsetting his six rebounds by committing five turnovers. He has now made one three-point shot in the last four games, two in the last six games and nine all season (on 24 attempts). In the second half, Diaz Graham only played the first four minutes before spending the rest of the game on the bench.
Starting center Cam Corhen had five points and five rebounds on Wednesday night. Papa Amadou Kante came off the bench to score four points and grab three rebounds in eight minutes.
All told, during the four stretches in the game when Diaz Graham and Corhen were on the court together, Pitt held a 22-16 scoring advantage. When Diaz Graham was on the court solo (a two-minute stretch in the first half), EKU outscored Pitt 8-5. When Corhen was on the court solo (four separate stretches, including the 23-0 scoring run), Pitt had a 47-22 advantage. And when Kante played his eight minutes, the Panthers outscored the Colonels 22-10.
Up next: Pitt’s win Wednesday night represented a homecoming of sorts after the Panthers spent their last five games away from home. They’ll have some time off before they host Sam Houston State in the non-conference finale on Saturday, Dec. 21. Pitt opens the full ACC schedule on New Year’s Day with a 2 pm tipoff against Cal at the Petersen Events Center.
The teams: Pitt (9-2 overall, 1-0 ACC, No. 31 KenPom) vs. No. 211 Eastern Kentucky (5-4 overall, No. 211 KenPom)
Top performers:
Brandin Cummings: 30 points, 10/13 FG, 6/8 3FG, 1 rebound, 1 steal
Zack Austin: 18 points, 6/10 FG, 2/3 3FG, 4/4 FT, 3 blocks
Ishmael Leggett: 17 points, 6/8 FG, 5/7 FT, 6 rebounds, 2 steals
Jaland Lowe: 11 points, 12 assists
The breakout game: Cummings put in an all-time performance Wednesday night. He got on the court early when Jaland Lowe picked up two fouls in the first two minutes and made an immediate impact, draining his first three shots plus a trio of free throws to account for all of Pitt’s first 12 points in the game.
Cummings continued the scoring when he bounced back from his first miss by making his next five attempts. Then, after two more misses, Cummings hit his final two shots to reach 30 points.
The record books: Cummings’ performance on Wednesday night was the sixth time in Pitt history that a freshman scored at least 30 points in a game (incidentally, all six of those have happened with Jeff Capel as head coach). Cummings also set the Pitt record for bench scoring by a freshman. His 10 made field goals tied for the fifth-most by a freshman in a game and his six made three’s tied for the second-most by a freshman.
A close one for 26 minutes: Pitt was favored to beat Eastern Kentucky by nearly 20 points, but the Colonels kept things much closer than anyone expected, trailing by three at halftime and cutting Pitt’s lead to six with 14 minutes left to play. But at that point, the Panthers went on a run, making seven of their next 10 shots and outscoring EKU 23-0 over the next five minutes and change to build a 29-point lead and put the game out of reach.
An awe-inspiring finish: Eastern Kentucky finally made a few baskets to cut Pitt’s run, but the Panthers responded by going on a torrid pace to close the game, hitting 9-of-10 from the floor in the final 6:17. It all amounted to a 46-12 run over the final 14 minutes of the game.
Hiding in plain sight: Cummings’ breakout game overshadowed everything else that happened Wednesday night, but it wasn’t the only notable development from the game. Zack Austin put up 18 points on a tidy 6-of-10 shooting and Jaland Lowe bounced back from his foul trouble to record his second double-double of the season and the third of his career. Most of that production came in the second half, as Lowe had 11 points and nine assists after halftime.
EKU’s strengths: EKU came into the game averaging 16.7 turnovers forced per game (No. 18 nationally) and 16.6 offensive rebound per game (No. 2 nationally), and the Colonels lived up to it in the first half, forcing seven turnovers and collecting six offensive rebounds. They turned those into points, too, scoring 11 points off turnovers and 14 second-chance points before halftime.
Pitt’s response: Not surprisingly, Pitt created its separation by limiting Eastern Kentucky in those two areas. During the 23-0 run in the second half, EKU only collected two offensive rebounds while missing nine shots. Similarly, the Panthers committed just three turnovers in the second half.
For the Colonels, all of that translated to just two points off turnovers and four second-chance points, which allowed Pitt to pull away.
Three-point shooting: The other thing Eastern Kentucky does a lot is shoot three’s, and the Colonels showed that with 28 attempts from beyond the arc. In the first half, that worked, as EKU shot 6-of-12 from three. In the second half, though, it didn’t go quite as well; the Colonels made just 1-of-16 from deep after halftime.
The center question: While Pitt’s guards and wings were excelling, the center position continued to be an issue.
Guillermo Diaz Graham’s struggles continued; the junior forward didn’t score on Wednesday night, missing all four of his shots and offsetting his six rebounds by committing five turnovers. He has now made one three-point shot in the last four games, two in the last six games and nine all season (on 24 attempts). In the second half, Diaz Graham only played the first four minutes before spending the rest of the game on the bench.
Starting center Cam Corhen had five points and five rebounds on Wednesday night. Papa Amadou Kante came off the bench to score four points and grab three rebounds in eight minutes.
All told, during the four stretches in the game when Diaz Graham and Corhen were on the court together, Pitt held a 22-16 scoring advantage. When Diaz Graham was on the court solo (a two-minute stretch in the first half), EKU outscored Pitt 8-5. When Corhen was on the court solo (four separate stretches, including the 23-0 scoring run), Pitt had a 47-22 advantage. And when Kante played his eight minutes, the Panthers outscored the Colonels 22-10.
Up next: Pitt’s win Wednesday night represented a homecoming of sorts after the Panthers spent their last five games away from home. They’ll have some time off before they host Sam Houston State in the non-conference finale on Saturday, Dec. 21. Pitt opens the full ACC schedule on New Year’s Day with a 2 pm tipoff against Cal at the Petersen Events Center.
