What we learned from Pittsburgh's exhibition wins over Providence and Pitt-Johnstown

Pittsburgh Basketball had its last exhibition game on Monday against Pitt-Johnstown, a game that should’ve been easy. However, the Panthers fought with their hands, up just 47-42 at halftime. The good news is that the home team went on a dominant run to open the game wide open, ultimately coasting to a 100-65 win. Five were in double figures for Pitt, led by Cameron Corhen with 21 points.

Between this and the Providence game, we’ve gotten 80 minutes of notes on Pittsburgh Basketball, with plenty of intriguing observations of the players on the roster. Here are my key takeaways from the games.

1. Omari Witherspoon, the MVP

Damarco Minor and Cam Corhen led the Panthers in scoring in each of the two games, but from an eye test perspective, the best player overall has been Witherspoon, a four-star guard prospect who has shined so far. In two games combined, he produced 23 points on 9/12 FG shooting, including two key three-point shots to give Pitt the lead against Pitt-Johnstown when they were struggling early.

Witherpsoon started in the second game and was just as good, and is capable of scoring at all three levels. Coach Jeff Capel has had success with freshmen guards in the past two years, and this one could end up being the best perimeter player on the roster. Fellow freshman Macari Moore (13 points in two games) looked impressive in his own right as well.

2.  Worrying defensive starts

While Witherspoon was the best part of the exhibitions, the early 9+ point deficits the Panthers faced in each game were the worst. They gave up several three-pointers and, just as bad, kept turning the ball over early on. Yes, they did recover both times to win the game, but once the matchups are real on November 3rd, the Panthers' opponents will make them pay.

3. Cam Corhen’s high ceiling and low floor

As the key returning player coming off a double-digit campaign, Corhen will be a focal point of the offense for Pittsburgh. Last year, we saw games in which he scored 15+ points in a half, while in others, he was inefficient and ineffective. We saw that in the first halves of the two games, with some foul trouble and six combined turnovers. 

But Corhen also had 31 combined points and was 9/11 from the free throw line. He has the potential to be a 15 ppg-caliber scorer, but still needs to be a better post option and rebound the ball better.

4. Brandin Cummings' ever-changing role in the offense

Another returning player for Pitt is Cummings, who had a limited role as a freshman guard off the bench last year. He’s viewed as a breakout candidate to watch, but he also had his ups and downs, combining for 22 points on 8/16 FG attempts, including three assists and two turnovers. With Witherspoon emerging as a lead guard candidate and Minor being the PG while on the floor, Cummings will likely play mostly off-ball this year. He can certainly score the ball and will need to be a double-digit scorer for the Panthers to be good enough. We’ll see how well he fits with the other guards and how much usage Cummings will have.

5. Indrusaitis will be an ACC 6th Man of the Year contender

One player who looks to have plenty of usage is Nojus Indrusaitis, a transfer guard who played little at Iowa State as a freshman but should have a much larger role with the Panthers. He had 11 points and seven rebounds against Providence and went for 18 points on 6/7 FG shooting versus Pitt-Johnstown. Outside of missing a few layup attempts against the Friars, Indrusaitis was arguably the best overall offensive threat for the Panthers. Assuming he keeps his role as the 6th Man, Pitt could have another candidate for the end-of-the-year award in this category.

6. Barry Dunning’s disappointing preseason

While Indrusaitis has excelled, Dunning may have been the most disappointing. After averaging over 15 points at South Alabama, including 46 points against Texas State, the senior forward struggled on offense in the preseason, scoring 12 points combined and taking just 13 shot attempts. That included missing some fairly open jumpers and was replaced by Witherspoon in the starting lineup in the second game.

The good news is that Pitt beat Providence even without much from Dunning, and it’s very possible he needs time to figure out his role in the offense, something others, such as Cummings, also need to. But after being predicted to lead the Panthers in scoring by many in the preseason, we may have to re-adjust our expectations for the key transfer forward.

7. Need to be patient with Roman Siupela

Another player who had high preseason hype was Siulepa, a 6’7 four-star forward prospect from Australia. The former rugby star started both games and combined for 17 points and eight rebounds, with many of his points coming in transition. He looks like a player who has only been with the team for over a month, still finding his way in the offense. However, Siulepa looked the part on both ends and managed to get to the foul line as well. It may be slower than someone like Witherspoon, but the freshman forward should be very impactful for the Panthers soon enough.

8. Need for Papa Kante to be an effective backup center

Kante struggled in his first full year after a knee injury, but is the clear backup center to Corhen. He produced seven points and four rebounds in the win over Providence, playing 21 minutes. He didn’t play in the second game due to knee swelling, and in his place were Kieran Mullen and Amdy Ndiaye, who didn’t overly impress in their 17 combined minutes on the floor.

So Kante will be part of the rotation and will need to have an impact behind Corhen or even next to him in bigger lineups. He looked good against the Friars at times, but can that hold up throughout the season?

We’ll know on Monday against Youngstown State.