Pitt beats N.C. State to inch closer to NCAA Tournament bubble

Two years ago, Pitt had lost 12 games in a row to N.C. State, a period spanning most of the Panthers’ time in the ACC.

Now, after a 67-64 victory Wednesday night at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C., the streak is going the other way. Pitt has won the past three against the Wolfpack, the most recent two in Raleigh.

But the most important set of numbers surrounding Pitt’s season to date are these: The Panthers (15-8, 6-6) have won five of their past six games to climb tantalizingly close to the NCAA Tournament bubble.

There’s much work to be done — after a weekend off, Pitt travels to Virginia on Tuesday — but Pitt associate head coach Tim O’Toole put the next week in proper perspective Wednesday night after the Panthers survived a series of tense moments to improve their record on an opponent’s floor to 5-2:

“We were pretty poised and thank (goodness),” he said on the 93.7 FM postgame show. “And on to the next.”

Pitt lost separate double-digit leads in each half, 11 in the first 20 minutes and 13 at the outset of the second half. But the Panthers rose up when it mattered most.

Pitt recorded clutch points and crucial stops on defense after the teams climbed into a 60-60 tie with 4 minutes, 16 seconds to play.

From there:

• Rebounds were crucial throughout the game, and Pitt won the battle on the boards 37-28. Two on the offensive end by Bub Carrington and Ismael Leggett led to a tie-breaking layup by Leggett. “A back-breaker,” O’Toole said.

• Pitt led only 63-62 with 1:44 left after two free throws by N.C. State’s D.J. Horne, who topped all scorers with 25 points.

• Then, Pitt’s Jaland Lowe and the Wolfpack’s D.J. Burns, the 275-pound center who finished with 19 points, traded missed shots, putting the pressure on Pitt to add to its one-point lead with 55 seconds to play.

• Carrington missed a layup, but Federiko Federiko was in position for an offensive rebound — the last of nine for the Panthers — and his put-back restored the three-point lead with 30 seconds to play. “One thing that absolutely breaks the spirit of the defense is when you give up O boards,” O’Toole said.

• Muhammed Diarra made it a one-point margin again with 11 seconds to play, but Lowe’s two free throws with six seconds left — the last of his 20 points — set the final score.

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Free throws also set apart the teams, with Pitt hitting 18 of 20 and N.C. State (15-8, 7-5) only 6 of 15.

Supporting Lowe were Hinson (16 points), Carrington (12) and Leggett (eight).

Later, O’Toole talked about another key to the victory: Pitt’s defense against N.C. State starting guards Casey Morsell and Jayden Taylor. Morsell scored five points, and Taylor was scoreless. Both came into the game averaging 12 per game.

At one point, it appeared Burns was preparing to take over the game. But his 9-of-16 shooting performance wasn’t enough, especially with Morsell and Taylor neutralized.

“We kept thinking they’re not going to generate enough points by pounding it inside,” O’Toole said. “Don’t get me wrong, Between (Burns) and (Ben) Middlebrooks, they did their damage on the interior. I was really worried about those perimeter guys, especially Taylor, and they were nowhere to be found.”

With eight games left, Pitt has a chance for a second consecutive memorable March. But the victory in Raleigh only puts Pitt in position to be in position.

“We talk a great deal about seizing the opportunity,” O’Toole said. “We’re coming along. I do think we’re kind of coming together, and we’re a pretty good club.”

Perhaps O’Toole’s most important key: “We came out from start to finish and fought all night long.”