After about 10 minutes last night, Pitt was down two guards - Nike Sibande left the game with a knee injury and Jamarius Burton was out after having a surgical procedure on his knee - so the coaches had to work a number of different combinations. Femi Odukale and Onyebuchi Ezeakudo were the point guards, so they were able to rotate a bit there. But Ithiel Horton was the primary 2 guard, and he saw a ton of minutes. He got about 3 minutes on the bench in the first half but didn't leave the court after Sibande's injury. In the second half, he played the first 11:09 without a break, at which point he was replaced by freshman Nate Santos.
Santos had only played SF in his 8+ minutes to that point, but he worked as the shooting guard for 2:16 while Horton was on the bench. Santos didn't record any stats in that stretch and Pitt only outscored Gannon 5-2 over that span, but it speaks to his versatility that he was able to step in there. Jeff Capel didn't have any info after the game on when to expect Sibande and Burton to return, but as long as they're out, Santos figures to be the backup 2 guard.
I don't expect the coaches to take Horton off the court very much, so Santos might not see too many minutes there. But Horton will need a rest from time to time, and if he gets into foul trouble, Santos could see extended minutes there.
Santos had only played SF in his 8+ minutes to that point, but he worked as the shooting guard for 2:16 while Horton was on the bench. Santos didn't record any stats in that stretch and Pitt only outscored Gannon 5-2 over that span, but it speaks to his versatility that he was able to step in there. Jeff Capel didn't have any info after the game on when to expect Sibande and Burton to return, but as long as they're out, Santos figures to be the backup 2 guard.
I don't expect the coaches to take Horton off the court very much, so Santos might not see too many minutes there. But Horton will need a rest from time to time, and if he gets into foul trouble, Santos could see extended minutes there.
