Pitt finished the non-conference portion of the 2024-25 schedule with a blowout, beating Sam Houston 110-78 at the Petersen Events Center on Saturday.
KenPom: Pitt (No. 27) vs. Sam Houston (No. 126)
Stat leaders:
Jaland Lowe - 18 points, 11 assists
Zack Austin - 23 points (8/12 FG, 5/9 3FG)
Ishmael Leggett - 23 points (8/12 FG, 3/4 3FG)
Cam Corhen - 15 points, 6 rebounds
A hot start
Pitt hasn’t always started games well this season. After the loss at Mississippi State, which was a beatdown from the start, the Panthers trailed Virginia Tech 36-28 at halftime and were clinging to a three-point lead against Eastern Kentucky before winning against both of those teams (Virginia Tech by five; EKU by 40).
On Saturday, there was no such sluggish start, despite a finals week 10-day layoff since the Eastern Kentucky game. Pitt jumped out to a 10-0 lead on Sam Houston right off the bat and used an 11-0 run later in the half to keep the Bearkats from entertaining any notions of an upset.
Not great defense
Pitt scored 110 points on Saturday, and while the Panthers didn’t need all 110 of those, they did need to keep scoring because Sam Houston’s offense shot well. The Bearkats hit 53.6% of their attempts from the floor, and in the first half they were 6-of-13 from beyond the arc (they were only 1-of-10 from three in the second half, though).
While Jeff Capel would have preferred to see his team defend better, Sam Houston isn’t a slouch offensively. The Bearkats came into Saturday averaging nearly 80 points per game, shooting 45% from the floor and 40% from three as a team.
Much better defense
Pitt didn’t do a great job overall defending against Sam Houston, but the Panthers were effective against the Bearkats’ top weapon: 6’5” wing Lamar Wilkerson, who came into Saturday averaging 20 points per game, shooting 48.5% from the floor and 49.4% from three.
Leggett drew the assignment of slowing down Wilkerson, though, and did a good job in that regard, as Wilkerson scored 15 points but needed 15 attempts - of which he made five - to get there. Wilkerson was also 2-of-9 from three and committed four turnovers.
A double-double for Lowe
Jaland Lowe’s 18 and 11 on Saturday made for his fourth career double-double, his third of the season (including one triple-double) and his second in a row after he had 12 and 11 against Eastern Kentucky. He has now scored in double figures in 10 of Pitt’s 12 games this season, including each of the last eight. Lowe has also recorded at least five assists in eight games.
Another 20-point game for Leggett
Ishmael Leggett tied for the game-high in scoring on Saturday, putting up 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-4 from three and 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Leggett has been in double figures in 11 of Pitt’s 12 games so far, he has scored at least 20 four times and he has scored at least 17 nine times.
Austin’s surge
Leggett’s 23 points were matched by Zack Austin, who also produced 23 for the highest-scoring game of his Pitt career. Austin has now scored 20 points or more in 14 career games dating back to his first two seasons at High Point, but Saturday was just the second time he has reached the 20-point mark at Pitt (he scored 20 in a win at Louisville last January).
Austin has been on fire of late for the Panthers. In three games since Pitt lost at Mississippi State, the senior forward has averaged 16.7 points per game while shooting 18-of-29 (62%) from the field and 8-of-15 (53.3%) from three. He has also recorded 14 rebounds and three blocks in that stretch.
Corhen’s bounce-back
Behind the 23-point games from Leggett and Austin and the double-double from Lowe was center Cam Corhen, who put up 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. It was a bounce-back game for Corhen, who opened the season with seven consecutive double-digit scoring performances - culminating with 16 in the loss to Wisconsin - but had not scored more than six in any of the four subsequent games.
On Saturday, Corhen was more active than he had been in those games. Half of his six rebounds were on the offensive end - resulting in one put-back basket - and his five made field goals and seven attempts were the most he has recorded in a game since the loss to Wisconsin.
A big one for Guillermo
Guillermo Diaz Graham’s eight points were overshadowed by the five Pitt players who reached double figures (Lowe, Leggett, Austin, Corhen and Brandin Cummings, who scored 10). But those eight points were some of the biggest for the night for the Panthers.
That’s because Diaz Graham had been in a pretty bad shooting slump, hitting 9-of-46 (19.6%) from three on the season, including just three makes in the last seven games (on 29 attempts).
On Saturday, though, Diaz Graham looked a little more like his old self, hitting 3-of-5 from the floor and 2-of-4 from three while grabbing five rebounds (two on offense). It was just the third time all season - and the first since mid-November - that Guillermo hit multiple three-pointers in a game.
A strong finish
Pitt closed out the non-conference schedule in style, scoring a combined 206 points in wins over Eastern Kentucky and Sam Houston.
The Panthers’ 110 points on Saturday were the most the team has scored with Capel as head coach and the third time under Capel that Pitt has reached 100 points. The Panthers have scored 100 or more 46 times in school history, and they have won all 46 of those.
Pitt reached 100 points in regulation three times under Jamie Dixon and once under Kevin Stallings. Under Capel, Pitt beat North Carolina A&T 100-52 and Jacksonville 107-56 (both last season).
Up next
Pitt heads into the new year with a 10-2 overall record and a 1-0 start to ACC play. The Panthers will get back on the court on New Year’s Day when they host Cal (7-4 overall, 0-1 ACC).
KenPom: Pitt (No. 27) vs. Sam Houston (No. 126)
Stat leaders:
Jaland Lowe - 18 points, 11 assists
Zack Austin - 23 points (8/12 FG, 5/9 3FG)
Ishmael Leggett - 23 points (8/12 FG, 3/4 3FG)
Cam Corhen - 15 points, 6 rebounds
A hot start
Pitt hasn’t always started games well this season. After the loss at Mississippi State, which was a beatdown from the start, the Panthers trailed Virginia Tech 36-28 at halftime and were clinging to a three-point lead against Eastern Kentucky before winning against both of those teams (Virginia Tech by five; EKU by 40).
On Saturday, there was no such sluggish start, despite a finals week 10-day layoff since the Eastern Kentucky game. Pitt jumped out to a 10-0 lead on Sam Houston right off the bat and used an 11-0 run later in the half to keep the Bearkats from entertaining any notions of an upset.
Not great defense
Pitt scored 110 points on Saturday, and while the Panthers didn’t need all 110 of those, they did need to keep scoring because Sam Houston’s offense shot well. The Bearkats hit 53.6% of their attempts from the floor, and in the first half they were 6-of-13 from beyond the arc (they were only 1-of-10 from three in the second half, though).
While Jeff Capel would have preferred to see his team defend better, Sam Houston isn’t a slouch offensively. The Bearkats came into Saturday averaging nearly 80 points per game, shooting 45% from the floor and 40% from three as a team.
Much better defense
Pitt didn’t do a great job overall defending against Sam Houston, but the Panthers were effective against the Bearkats’ top weapon: 6’5” wing Lamar Wilkerson, who came into Saturday averaging 20 points per game, shooting 48.5% from the floor and 49.4% from three.
Leggett drew the assignment of slowing down Wilkerson, though, and did a good job in that regard, as Wilkerson scored 15 points but needed 15 attempts - of which he made five - to get there. Wilkerson was also 2-of-9 from three and committed four turnovers.
A double-double for Lowe
Jaland Lowe’s 18 and 11 on Saturday made for his fourth career double-double, his third of the season (including one triple-double) and his second in a row after he had 12 and 11 against Eastern Kentucky. He has now scored in double figures in 10 of Pitt’s 12 games this season, including each of the last eight. Lowe has also recorded at least five assists in eight games.
Another 20-point game for Leggett
Ishmael Leggett tied for the game-high in scoring on Saturday, putting up 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-4 from three and 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Leggett has been in double figures in 11 of Pitt’s 12 games so far, he has scored at least 20 four times and he has scored at least 17 nine times.
Austin’s surge
Leggett’s 23 points were matched by Zack Austin, who also produced 23 for the highest-scoring game of his Pitt career. Austin has now scored 20 points or more in 14 career games dating back to his first two seasons at High Point, but Saturday was just the second time he has reached the 20-point mark at Pitt (he scored 20 in a win at Louisville last January).
Austin has been on fire of late for the Panthers. In three games since Pitt lost at Mississippi State, the senior forward has averaged 16.7 points per game while shooting 18-of-29 (62%) from the field and 8-of-15 (53.3%) from three. He has also recorded 14 rebounds and three blocks in that stretch.
Corhen’s bounce-back
Behind the 23-point games from Leggett and Austin and the double-double from Lowe was center Cam Corhen, who put up 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. It was a bounce-back game for Corhen, who opened the season with seven consecutive double-digit scoring performances - culminating with 16 in the loss to Wisconsin - but had not scored more than six in any of the four subsequent games.
On Saturday, Corhen was more active than he had been in those games. Half of his six rebounds were on the offensive end - resulting in one put-back basket - and his five made field goals and seven attempts were the most he has recorded in a game since the loss to Wisconsin.
A big one for Guillermo
Guillermo Diaz Graham’s eight points were overshadowed by the five Pitt players who reached double figures (Lowe, Leggett, Austin, Corhen and Brandin Cummings, who scored 10). But those eight points were some of the biggest for the night for the Panthers.
That’s because Diaz Graham had been in a pretty bad shooting slump, hitting 9-of-46 (19.6%) from three on the season, including just three makes in the last seven games (on 29 attempts).
On Saturday, though, Diaz Graham looked a little more like his old self, hitting 3-of-5 from the floor and 2-of-4 from three while grabbing five rebounds (two on offense). It was just the third time all season - and the first since mid-November - that Guillermo hit multiple three-pointers in a game.
A strong finish
Pitt closed out the non-conference schedule in style, scoring a combined 206 points in wins over Eastern Kentucky and Sam Houston.
The Panthers’ 110 points on Saturday were the most the team has scored with Capel as head coach and the third time under Capel that Pitt has reached 100 points. The Panthers have scored 100 or more 46 times in school history, and they have won all 46 of those.
Pitt reached 100 points in regulation three times under Jamie Dixon and once under Kevin Stallings. Under Capel, Pitt beat North Carolina A&T 100-52 and Jacksonville 107-56 (both last season).
Up next
Pitt heads into the new year with a 10-2 overall record and a 1-0 start to ACC play. The Panthers will get back on the court on New Year’s Day when they host Cal (7-4 overall, 0-1 ACC).
