Balanced offensive effort from reshuffled starting lineup propels Pitt over Sacred Heart

After his team’s 91-66 loss to Pitt on Saturday at Petersen Events Center, Sacred Heart coach Anthony Latina was highly complimentary of Panthers sophomore center Federiko Federiko.

After all, Federiko, starting in place of junior John Hugley, torched the Pioneers for 17 points and 14 rebounds — 10 on the offensive glass.

“(He’s) a guy that makes it impossible to score at the rim,” Latina said of Federiko. “… I actually thought (Federiko starting) was a negative for us because the kid is so athletic (and) he’s so long.”

Hugley, who continues to work his way back to full health from a knee injury suffered during the offseason, came off the bench Saturday, playing just 10 minutes and scoring two points.

While he was one of coach Jeff Capel’s first substitutions at the initial media timeout of the first half, as the game went on and Federiko started dominating, Hugley was relegated to the bench.

Hugley didn’t take the court in the second half until the 9:30 mark and played just three minutes in the final half.

As Hugley recovers, Federiko has stepped up as a viable replacement.

“The double-double is great, but the main thing is that he plays hard, he defends, he rebounds (and) we understand who he is,” Capel said. “… The main thing that he does is that he gives us great energy.”

Nelly Cummings led Pitt (7-4, 1-0 ACC) with 24 points, 18 coming from beyond the arc. He shot 8 of 17 from the floor and 6 of 12 from behind the arc.

Blake Hinson added 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Greg Elliott chipped in 18 points.

It was Federiko and Cummings who helped bust the game open about halfway through the second half.

Cummings hit a pair of 3s and Federiko scored two layups, giving the Panthers their first double-digit lead, 67-56, with 11:59 to play.

From the 11:29 mark of the second half, Pitt maintained a lead of at least 10 as the Panthers outscored the Pioneers 23-7, including a 12-0 run over the final five minutes.

The Panthers also were without senior guard Jamarius Burton, who was sidelined because of knee inflammation, the same issue that sidelined him Nov. 20 against Alabama State.

Nike Sibande started in his place, scoring six points in just under 25 minutes.

Against the Pioneers (5-5) of the Northeast Conference, the Panthers managed to handle business using a reshuffled lineup.

The quartet of Cummings, Hinson, Elliott and Federiko proved more than capable of shouldering the offensive load.

Cummings has 42 points over his last two games, and Elliott quietly has scored 38 over the same span.

“It’s huge for us,” Capel said. “… (Elliot is) a great teammate. He brings great energy. (He’s) incredibly positive, understands who he is, doesn’t try to do things that he can’t do and throughout his career has been a really good shooter.”

Before the Panthers’ loss earlier this week at Vanderbilt, Cummings had managed 47 points over the previous five games.

After setting a season high in points in back-to-back games, the Colgate transfer looks to be settling in with Pitt.

“It’s just as simple as getting comfortable, making shots, being here longer than a few games,” Cummings said. “I got a chance to get comfortable, and that’s a product of being in the gym a lot.”

The Panthers are off for a week before another home game Dec. 17 against North Florida.

Notes: Pitt dominated the glass, outrebounding Sacred Heart, 54-26, and setting a season best in rebounds. … By the under-12 media timeout of the first half, the Panthers had converted just 27.8% (5 of 18) of their field goals. As the game went on, they heated up, finishing 45.2% (33 of 73) from the floor and 35.5% (11 of 31) from deep. … Capel did not discuss freshman Dior Johnson after the game. Johnson, 18, was recently ordered to serve a year of probation after pleading guilty to two misdemeanor counts of domestic violence Friday. Johnson was suspended indefinitely from Pitt’s program in early October pending the resolution of all legal charges filed against him. He has not made his debut for the Panthers and a potential reinstatement to the team remains unclear.