Pitt (11-6, 4-2 ACC) at Georgia Tech (8-8, 1-5 ACC)
Saturday, January 14, 2023 • 3:00 PM
Atlanta, Ga. • McCamish Pavilion
ACC Network • 93.7 The Fan
THE OPENING TIP
• Pitt continues its three-game road stretch Saturday, Jan. 14 against Georgia Tech at McCamish Pavilion. Tipoff is set for 3 pm with Mike Monaco and Randolph Childress calling the game on ACC Network.
• The Panthers’ past five games have been decided by eight points or fewer, including four one score contests. All six of Pitt’s ACC games have been decided by eight points or fewer.
• Pitt’s ACC strength of schedule leads the conference through the first six games of league play (.8114 – Torvik). The Panthers’ six conference opponents are currently a combined 24-10 in league play.
• Four of the past five meetings between Pitt and Georgia Tech have been decided by nine points or fewer.
• Jamarius Burton has scored 20 or more points three times in ACC play and is averaging 20.5 points per game in conference play. He is shooting 54.7 percent (47-of-86) from the field and 85.7 percent (24-of-28) from the foul line in ACC play.
• Blake Hinson has posted 16 double figure scoring games, including 10 15+ point efforts and four games with 20 or more points. He is one of two players in the Atlantic Coast Conference averaging 16.0 or more points per game (16.4 ppg.) and 6.5 or more rebounds per game (6.7 rpg.).
• Nike Sibande has come off the bench to score in double figures in two of the past three games and six times overall. He is averaging 10.0 points and 5.0 rebounds, while going 10-of-20 (.500) from the field, in the past three games.
BY THE NUMBERS
• The Panthers’ backcourt quartet of Jamarius Burton, Nelly Cummings, Greg Elliottand Nike Sibande has combined for 5,038 points in 13,152 minutes over 519 career games. Per ESPN Stats & Info, Pitt is one of four programs (along with UAB, Chattanooga, and Texas) in the NCAA with four or more players with 125+ games played.
• The Panthers are averaging 16.9 assists per game, while shooting 45.5 percent from the field, in their 11 wins this season. Nelly Cummings (64), Jamarius Burton (38), and Nike Sibande (26) have combined for 128 assists with a 2.42:1 assist-to-turnover ratio in those contests.
• Pitt is 9-1 on the season when winning the rebounding battle. The Panthers rank fourth in the ACC in rebound margin (+3.82) but have a -6.2 rebound margin in their six losses.
• Pitt ranks third in the ACC in three-point percentage defense (.301), while Georgia Tech (.284) enters Saturday’s contest leading the conference in that category.
• The Panthers rank 65th in the latest KenPom and NCAA Net rankings. Pitt is 3-2 in Quad 1 games with wins at Northwestern, at NC State, and against Virginia.
• Pitt ranks fourth in the ACC in three-point field goals (8.65 3pg.) with Blake Hinson and Greg Elliott combining for 4.18 threes per game and ranking among the individual leaders in that category. A year ago, the Panthers were 14th in the ACC at just 5.38 three-point field goals per game.
• Jamarius Burton (16.5 ppg.) and Blake Hinson (16.4 ppg.) are tied for the third leading ACC scoring tandem this season. Pitt has not had two players averaging 15.0 or more points per game since the 2016-17 season.
• Jamarius Burton is one of two players in the NCAA averaging at least 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game, while shooting over 50 percent from the field, on the season.
• Blake Hinson and North Carolina’s Armando Bacot are the only players in the ACC averaging over 16.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Hinson leads the Panthers in rebounds (6.7 rpg.), double-doubles (4), double-figure scoring games (16), 20+ point games (4), and free throws made (59), while ranking second in scoring ( 16.4 ppg.) and field goals made (92).
• Federico Federico has blocked two or more shots in six of the past eight games and nine times overall on the season. He ranks fifth in the ACC with 1.65 blocks per game.
• Greg Elliott has made at least one three-point field goal in 10 consecutive games with three or more threes in five of those contests. He is averaging 11.8 points per game, while going 24-of-54 (.444) from beyond the arc in that stretch.
• The Panthers’ starting backcourt of Nelly Cummings and Jamarius Burton has combined for 2,546 points, 740 rebounds, 689 assists, and 218 steals in 261 career games. The tandem is combining to average 27.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 8.9 assists per game, while shooting 47.7 percent (158-of-331) from the field this season.
• Nelly Cummings is averaging 15.4 points per game, while shooting 53.2 percent (25-of-47) from the field and 45.5 percent (15-of-33) from three-point range, in Pitt’s five road games.
• Federico Federico is contributing 10.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks per 40 minutes played. He has played 20 or more minutes in a game nine times and is averaging 8.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks in those contests.
• Nelly Cummings is averaging 12.8 points and 5.2 assists per game with a 2.7:1 assist-to-turnover ratio over the past 10 games. He is 23-of-58 (.397) from three-point range and 19-of-20 (.950) from the foul line in that span.
• Blake Hinson has scored in double figures in a career-high 15 consecutive games. He is tied for second in the ACC with 16 total games with 10 or more points scored.
PANTHER SPOTLIGHTS
• Greg Elliott is 13-of-29 (.448) from three-point range and averaging 13.2 points per game in road games this season.
• Nelly Cummings is four assists shy of 300 career assists. He is tied for fourth in the ACC in assists (4.8 apg.) and has had five or more assists in a game 11 times.