Pittsburgh aims to stop its latest three-game losing streak when it hosts Wake Forest on Tuesday in an Atlantic Coast Conference game.
The Panthers (8-12, 1-6 ACC) sustained their sixth loss in seven games with an 81-72 setback to North Carolina State on Saturday afternoon.
Pitt made just 11 of 25 shots from the free-throw line versus the Wolfpack. The Panthers are second to last in the ACC in free throw percentage (66.3%).
“We’ve got to be able to make free throws,” Pitt head coach Jeff Capel said after the game. “We’ve got to have the mental toughness to step up and make them. Gotta be able to do it.”
They’ll look to reverse this concerning trend against Wake Forest.
The Demon Deacons (11-9, 2-5) fell for the sixth time in eight games with a 90-69 setback to Duke on Saturday afternoon.
“This is the worst job I’ve ever done in 37 years of coaching a team to get loose balls,” Wake Forest head coach Steve Forbes said. “It’s frustrating as hell, and I feel like it’s a reflection of me — not who I am. That’s not how I operate. That’s not how my teams play. I can’t get them to get a loose ball. It’s crazy, it’s frustrating, and it’s demoralizing.”
The Demon Deacons likely will turn to their leading scorer, 3-point shooter, and rebounder to help them get back on track.
Juke Harris is third in the ACC in scoring at 20.6 points a game and has scored at least 20 points on 50-plus percent shooting from the field in four out of the last five games.
Myles Colvin, who is second on the team in scoring at 12.5 points per game, is hoping to bounce back from a tough outing against Duke. He finished with five points.
Brandin Cummings leads Pitt in scoring at 13.1 points per game. However, he has not shot above 40 percent from the field in any of the past three games.
Cameron Corhen, who is seventh in the ACC in rebounding at 8.1 per game, will look to take advantage of Wake Forest’s struggles in that area.
