After WVU beatdown, Jeff Capel pleased with Pitt's response heading into Legends Classic

There couldn’t have been much talking on Pitt’s bus ride home from Morgantown on Thursday after the Panthers were routed by West Virginia on the road for their first loss of the season.

All of Pitt’s previous games, wins against Youngstown State, Longwood and Eastern Michigan, had looked routine enough from a distance, but Capel still thought the Panthers weren’t playing up to their full potential when it came time to visit WVU.

Against their rival and Big 12 foe, the Panthers fell 71-49, posting a season-low in points while shooting 25% from long range.

Not long after, Capel began searching for a silver lining.

“I hate that it happened, but one of the things I told (the team) when we got back together was, ‘Maybe this is the best thing,’” Capel said. “I didn’t think we were playing well up to that point. … I didn’t think we had played well since (an Oct. 19 exhibition against) Providence for whatever reason and West Virginia just exposed it.”

Having talked through the loss with his roster, Capel was curious how they’d respond when Bucknell visited Petersen Events Center on Monday.

Bucknell, of the Patriot League, last played Pitt on Jan. 2, 2005, when the Bison upset the No. 10-ranked Panthers in Pittsburgh, 69-66, with current coach John Griffin III present as a player.

That magic wasn’t repeated Monday, however, as Pitt (4-1) cruised to an 84-50 win, shooting lights out from the floor (50.8%) while allowing a season-low in points.

“I think it’s important to have this performance coming off of a loss,” Capel said. “As a coach, you don’t know how you’re going to respond when you’re coming off a loss, especially when you come off of a loss like that. It’s a rivalry. We did not play well. We didn’t play anywhere like we’re capable of playing. … Give (WVU) all the credit in the world for that, but I love how we responded.”

Barry Dunning Jr., a player whom Capel gave only two minutes at WVU, broke out against Bucknell, dropping 23 points while looking like the pure scorer at South Alabama that the Panthers targeted in the transfer portal this offseason.

Dunning’s solid bench performance was complemented by 11 points apiece from Brandin Cummings, Cam Corhen, Omari Witherspoon and Nojus Indrusatis.

Witherspoon, a true freshman who Capel thinks highly enough to have started every game so far, has shot 16 of 29 (55.1%) over his last three games after beginning the year 3 for 13 (23.1%).

The 6-foot-4 guard is also tied for the team lead in assists (17) and is shooting 38.5% (5 of 13) from long range.

Still, Witherspoon continues to challenge himself defensively.

“It’s been great to come out here and start for the team,” Witherspoon said. “I just feel I need to keep going on the defensive end, going out there, playing defense and getting steals, and I feel like it’s going to work myself into the game. All my other intangibles, offensively — all the other stuff is going to come with that.”

West Virginia constituted Pitt’s first test on the road, and the Panthers came up decidedly short when all was said and done.

Soon, it’ll be time to hit the road again, as Pitt travels to Daytona Beach, Fla., for the Legends Classic.

The invitational features Pitt, Central Florida and Quinnipiac, with the Panthers and Knights tipping off at 7 p.m. Thursday from the Ocean Center.

That’ll offer Capel a chance to evaluate how much his team has grown since a reality check against the Mountaineers.

“Teams that I’ve coached, it’s always been interesting to see how we respond after getting out butts kicked,” Capel said. “To me, that’s when you find out who you really, really are. When everything’s going well and everyone’s patting you on the back, it’s easy to be together.

“But when you get your butts beat, then you really start to figure out who’s with you and with us. You figure out who you are and we’re getting close. … I thought we responded in great fashion (against Bucknell).”