Pittsburgh Basketball: Takeaways from 2nd straight ACC loss to Duke

Another second-half letdown prevents Pittsburgh Basketball from getting a big road win at Duke, despite a double-digit lead at the half.

A road game at Cameron Indoor Stadium is one of the hardest in the country to win at, especially when the Duke Blue Devils are good. But Pittsburgh Basketball made it look easy at first, taking an early lead in the first half and taking a 43-32 halftime advantage.

But the second half went away for the Panthers, going on multiple droughts that gave up the lead and ultimately, falling, 77-69. It’s the second-straight loss for the team, now 11-6 (4-2) on the season. Is Pitt in trouble after this defeat? Here are some takeaways from the game.

Size advantage proved to be too much for the Panthers

The one concern in this game was how much bigger and taller Duke was than Pitt. And while the Blue Devils didn’t take advantage of second-chance opportunities in the first half, they easily did in the second. Pittsburgh had 28 rebounds in the game, while the Blue Devils had 24 on the offensive end, 51 total. That, combined with going 23/27 from the free throw line, the Panthers just couldn’t overcome the length and size mismatch. 7’0 Kyle Filipowski dominating Blake Hinson at the four-spot proved to be decisive as well.

Burton/Cummings iso-ball can only do so much

Pittsburgh shot just 6/22 from three-point range and when Hinson isn’t going, the offense usually comes down to Jamarius Burton and Nelly Cummings creating offense for themselves and others. That worked in the first half but Duke’s defense toughened up in the second, preventing easy penetration and not getting exploited on mismatches. This is where not having John Hugley hurts, as Federiko Federiko had four points in 23 minutes and never got the ball when a guard was on him. It worked in the second halves against UNC and Virginia but fell apart at Duke.

Pittsburgh did what it needed to do in 4-game stretch

Losing two straight games is never fun but the Panthers ended this recent four-game run with a 2-2 record, getting two ranked victories in the process and staying competitive in all. This has allowed Pittsburgh Basketball to be on the bubble in the hunt for an NCAA Tournament bid. This was easily the toughest stretch for the team in ACC play and sets them up for success later on.

It also means that Pittsburgh has plenty of pressure in the upcoming stretch of games, taking on Georgia Tech, Louisville, and Florida State. Any of the three would be bad losses for their resume, making them “must wins” for the program.