Pitt falls to Boston College for 21st consecutive road loss

BOSTON — A leaking roof, blood on the floor from one of Boston College’s starters that sent him to the locker room and two more starters sitting out with an injury.

Not your average way to get a victory.

Ky Bowman scored 14 points, with eight rebounds and seven assists, and the Eagles overcame the loss of three injured starters to beat Pitt, 66-57, on Tuesday night, sending the Panthers to their 21st straight road loss.

“You’ve got to find a way to win games, and we were lucky enough to find a way to win with timely shots and stops,” BC coach Jim Christian said.

Jairus Hamilton added 11 points for the Eagles (12-11, 3-8 ACC). BC snapped its four-game losing streak.

Jared Wilson-Frame led Pitt (12-13, 2-10) with 12 points and seven rebounds. The Panthers shot just 29 percent (20 of 69) in losing their eighth straight game.

“It was, obviously, a very poor offensive performance by us,” Pitt first-year coach Jeff Capel said. “We didn’t shoot the ball well. That’s an understatement.”

Neither team held more than a two-possession lead from 13 1/2 minutes to go until Jared Hamilton’s 3-pointer from the right wing gave BC a 63-56 lead with 3 minutes, 37 seconds to play. He followed with a jumper from the right corner.

The matchup between two of the ACC’s bottom teams got extremely sloppy at times and had an interesting side note in the first half. There was a leak in roof that had two of BC’s team managers wiping the floor with towels near the free-throw line in front of the Eagles’ bench when play was up the other end and during stoppages.

“I thought that was the blood,” Christian said. “I didn’t notice it.”

Bowman did and even credited student manager Bobby Clarke, saying he “did a great job.”

The game was played in front of just a few hundred fans with a major snowstorm blanketing the area. One person who did get through the snowy roads and made his way to the game was Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge, who was seated courtside until halftime.

BC used a 13-0 run early in the opening half en route to a 36-32 edge at intermission.

The Panthers have three more shots to end their dismal road woes: Feb. 20 at Georgia Tech, March 2 at No. 4 Virginia and March 5 at Miami. They’ve now lost 18 consecutive league road games.

“Obviously, it’s taking a toll,” Capel said. “Anytime you lose, it takes a toll on your group.”

There seems to be very few favorable matchups the rest of the way for the Eagles, especially if they’re missing key players like they were for this game.

Starters guard Wynston Tabbs and forward Nik Popovich, two of their top four scorers, were sidelined with an injury. Tabbs (13.9 points per game) missed his sixth straight with a left knee injury, and Popovich (13.6) is in concussion protocol.

Later, guard Jordan Chatman (also 13.9 points per) left twice and didn’t return after the second time because of a cut left index finger. Starting forward Steffon Mitchell was sidelined for a stretch after getting poked in the eye.

Pitt hosts No. 22 Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon.