Pitt finds ‘winning is hard’ as it heads into regular-season finale on 6-game skid

Before he fielded a question Monday during the final weekly ACC men’s basketball coaches teleconference of the season, Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner praised Pitt’s effort and energy level.

“I’m a big fan of Pitt’s team,” said Pastner, whose Yellow Jackets host the Panthers on Wednesday for Pitt’s regular-season finale. “I think they play hard and play well defensively.”

Five days prior, Pitt coach Jeff Capel had a decidedly different view of his team, but the Panthers got back in his good graces after they “(ticked)” him off during a 23-point home loss to Syracuse last week.

“I thought we played better against N.C. State,” Capel said Monday, referring to a 77-73 loss in Raleigh, N.C., on Saturday. “We put ourselves in an opportunity and in a position where we had an opportunity for a win. For us, it’s difficult to practice because of the way our schedule has been and with lack of depth that we have. We have to be very strategic and smart with what we do in practice because we want to be prepared to do our best during games. So I thought we did good practices, but they are not long and there’s not a lot of physicality in them this time of year.”

Pitt has lost six consecutive games to fall to 15-15 overall and to within a half-game of last place in the ACC (6-13).

Pitt coach Jeff Capel questioned his team’s effort, energy level and ability to self-motivate in a game that featured more Pitt turnovers (17) than made shots (16).#Pitt #Syracusehttps://t.co/H9xCRC9tst

— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) February 27, 2020

Pitt’s roster still is young in Year 2 of Capel’s rebuilding project — three sophomores and a freshman are the leading scorers — and it has let leads be squandered. The Panthers led inside of 6 minutes left against N.C. State and led at halftime Feb. 22 against reigning national champion Virginia.

Three of the Panthers’ conference losses are by four or fewer points. Another was in overtime against now-No. 10 Louisville.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a skill,” Capel said of closing out close games. “I just think it’s something you have to learn how to do. Winning is hard. It’s really hard.

“In our game, you have so many things that can impact winning and losing. Our game is really, really unforgiving, and I think in our game you can lose, I think in more ways than any other sport. There’s so many things that can go into it.”

Pitt has found many ways to lose in the past four seasons since Jamie Dixon left, including the past six games.

As a contrast, Capel brought up Virginia, which has won six consecutive to move from the NCAA Tournament bubble to No. 22 in the latest Associated Press top 25 rankings released Monday. Five of Virginia’s past six wins have come by a combined 11 points. In winning the national title last season, two of its tournament wins were by four- and one- point margins. Ttwo others were in overtime.

“Because of that experience, they are calm. They can have poise and do all those things because they have been through it,” Capel said.

The Panthers, of course, don’t have anywhere close to the experience or championship pedigree.

“We’re not there yet,” Capel said. “We’re getting better. We don’t have, certainly, the experience of winning. We’ve won some close games this year. We’ve had to make some free throws and make some shots and get a few stops, all of those things — but we’ve also lost some of them in those situations. We have to continue to learn and get better. We’ve made some strides. Obviously, we’re not where we want to be.”

Note: Georgia Tech withdrew its appeal of the NCAA postseason ban and will not play in this month’s ACC Tournament.

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