Ithiel Horton scores 18, leads Pitt to win at Miami in ACC opener

Ithiel Horton knew there were eyes on him at the start of the season.

He came in as a transfer from Delaware with the reputation as a scorer.

Of course, it was frustrating when he missed 23 of his 33 shots in Pitt’s first five games.

But he spent some time in the gym recently — outside of practice — and he saw the results show up Wednesday night in Pitt’s 70-55 victory at Miami in the ACC opener for both teams.

He hit six of 11 shots (four of six from beyond the 3-point arc) to lead the Panthers (5-1, 1-0) in scoring 18 points.

“A good shooter has to have convenient amnesia,” coach Jeff Capel said. “You have to be able to forget about it.”

Said Horton of his slow starts: “It would definitely be frustrating. You have family watching you back home.

“But as long as I’m alive, I’m going to keep fighting. When I make that first shot, it’s on.”

Horton’s accuracy, especially in the second half when Miami led briefly by one point, was no surprise to Capel.

“It’s something we’ve seen a lot in practice,” Capel said. “Hopefully, this is a game that gets him going. It gives us a different weapon when he’s shooting the ball and playing with confidence like that.”

On a night when Pitt committed 23 fouls — 15 in the first half — and 16 turnovers, the Panthers needed help in several areas. Especially with Justin Champagnie following up his back-to-back 20/20 efforts by drawing his second foul four minutes into the game.

Champagnie’s impact was limited, but he still ended up with 10 points and nine rebounds.

Point guard Xavier Johnson was called for his fourth foul with 13 minutes, 15 seconds left in the game and finished with only seven points while missing all three of his 3-point attempts.

Au’Diese Toney stepped into the void by scoring 15 points, and freshman John Hugley added nine.

“Au’Diese the steady guy,” Capel said.

Horton, who practiced with the team last season while sitting out games, said he has seen a big difference in Toney.

“Last year, he’d be on the wing and looked to pass the basketball,” Horton said. “This year, his basketball IQ increased, and his aggressiveness increased.”

Capel played 12 players, with everyone getting at least five minutes, while Miami was limited by injury to six scholarship players. Starters Chris Lykes and Cam McGuskey did not play.

One of the players who came off Pitt’s bench was senior guard Nike Sibande, who finally was cleared after transferring from Miami (Ohio) when the NCAA gave a blanket waiver to all players who transfer. He didn’t get word of his clearance until an hour before the game.

Sibande played eight minutes, scored three points and added two rebounds with three turnovers.

“He got us going with a 3,” Capel said. “But you saw the rust.

“He’s going to be really good for us.“

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