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Pitt played its worse game of the season, as Notre Dame handled the Panthers 84-58 at the Petersen Events Center. Pitt now drops to 8-5 on the season, and has lost three straight games. Justin Champagnie paced the Panthers once again, as the sophomore forward finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds, his seventh double-double of the season.
There was not much else that went right for the Panthers on Saturday. The team unraveled a bit in the end and finished with two technical fouls. Xavier Johnson fouled out with 11:28 remaining after picking up a foul and a technical in the same sequence. Johnson finished with just 5 points and 3 assists. Ithiel Horton was later hit with a technical as well and got sent to the locker room. The sophomore ended the game with 9 points and 3 rebounds.
Notre Dame came into the game as the league leader in made 3-point field goals and the Irish put on a shooting display on Saturday night representative of that. Mike Brey’s team connected on 13 made 3-pointers, including five from junior guard Prentiss Hubb, who finished with 17 points.
The Panthers limited Notre Dame leading scorer Nate Laszewski to just seven points, but four other players reached double figures in a balanced scoring for the Irish.
Pitt looked up to the task in the first ten minutes of the game. Champagnie made a 3-pointer at the 11:54 mark of the first half giving Pitt a 20-19 edge. It was the Panthers’ final lead of the contest. Notre Dame outscored Pitt 22-8 to close out the half to give the Irish a 41-29 advantage at the break.
Notre Dame started the second half in that same type of rhythm. The Irish scored the first nine points after halftime, and forced Pitt head coach Jeff Capel to call a timeout. Pitt never really threatened from there, as Notre Dame was able to extend its lead to as much as 27 points at one point in the second half, before finishing it out 84-58.
Pitt shot just 31% from the field on Saturday night. The Panthers were 8-of-26 from 3-point range as well. Conversely, Notre Dame shot a scorching 56.1% from the field and had open shots throughout the contest.
Pitt has now lost three straight games after an impressive 79-73 win over Duke earlier this month. The road for this team will not get any easier with three ranked games against Virginia Tech, Florida State, and Louisville on the horizon. Pitt will host the Hokies, fresh off of a commanding 65-51 win over Virginia, on Wednesday at the Petersen Events Center.
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