Pitt finally makes an impact in the ACC

Jeff Capel loves to beat North Carolina — he’s a Duke guy, after all — but he was careful not to put too much significance on Pitt’s 66-52 victory Saturday at Petersen Events Center.

“It’s a step,” he said. “I don’t know what it speaks to, but it’s a step in the right direction for us.”

Slowly and with a few hiccups along the way, Pitt is becoming a team that deserves respect. Let’s not forget: Pitt is the only ACC team to beat No. 9 Florida State, which is tied for the conference lead with Louisville — and the Cardinals needed overtime to defeat the Panthers.

Pitt has three victories in seven conference games, which doesn’t sound like much, until you do some math and see Pitt needed 40 games (back to the 2017 ACC Tournament) to defeat four teams before this season.

“We have to continue to try and put days together,” Capel said, “but we’re getting better, and we’re understanding what it takes to become a really good program and a really good team. It takes listening, understanding and going out and playing together. I thought the whole game we did that (Saturday), but the first 20 minutes was outstanding.”

In the second half, Pitt was able to maintain no less than a 10-point margin while making only five field goals.

“We caught ourselves and maintained our composure,” sophomore guard Xavier Johnson said.

“Coach always talks about discipline and coming together,” guard Ryan Murphy said, “and I think we’re starting to do that more and more each day.”

Getting 23 points off 16 North Carolina turnovers was another obvious reason for the victory, but contributions from the following three players should not be minimized:

• Au’Diese Toney. He’s only 6-foot-6, but he has plenty of hop in his legs. He had seven rebounds and four steals against the Tar Heels. His return last week after missing two games with an elbow injury was welcomed by Capel. “It gives us more depth,” he said. “He can defense multiple positions. He can defense a bigger guy.”

• Murphy. A transfer from New Mexico Junior College (give Capel credit for finding him), Murphy is the Panthers’ busiest 3-point shooter. He has made 34 in 100 attempts, putting him just outside the top seven in the ACC. “He ran to a spot in transition, and we were able to find him there,” Capel said.

• Terrell Brown. The 6-10 junior no longer is a starter, but he is good for about two blocks per game while averaging less than 20 minutes. He had four against North Carolina. The importance of good defense around the rim can’t be overstated.

Next up for Pitt is Boston College on Wednesday night in the last of three consecutive home games. After that the schedule gets more difficult with games at Syracuse and Duke.

“Conference games happen fast,” Murphy said.

BC (9-9, 3-4) has defeated Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Virginia (ranked No. 18 at the time). But the Eagles also have lost four of their past five games, all by double-digit margins. They were embarrassed by Duke at Cameron Indoor, 88-49, and lost by 19 to Georgia Tech at home before an 80-62 loss Sunday night at Wake Forest.

BC’s trip to Pittsburgh will be the last of its three consecutive road games in eight days.

Get the latest news about Pitt basketball and all things Panthers athletics.