University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Pitt Hosts Morehead State Sunday in Gotham Classic Tilt
12/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game Notes (PDF)
Pitt (7-1) vs. Morehead State (5-2)
Sunday, December 13, 2015 • 4:00 p.m. • ESPN3
Pittsburgh, Pa. • Petersen Events Center
THE OPENING TIP
• Pitt (7-1) hosts Morehead State (5-2) Sunday, Dec. 13 at the Petersen Events Center. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. with ESPN3 broadcasting the contest. Sunday's game is the second of four Gotham Classic matchups for the Panthers.
• The Panthers are 61-3 in the month of December at the Petersen Events Center, including a 57-3 mark under Jamie Dixon.
• Pitt has scored 90 or more points in a game four times this season and leads in the ACC in scoring at 87.0 points per game.
LAST TIME OUT
• Pitt posted an 84-51 win over Eastern Washington Friday, Dec. 11 at the Petersen Events Center. The Panthers held the Eagles 32.8 points below their season scoring average in the game.
• Michael Young recorded his fourth 20-point game of the season, finishing with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field. He also shared the team lead with four assists.
• Jamel Artis added 14 points, while Chris Jones came off the bench to score 11 points.
• Rafael Maia grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds for his first double-digit rebounding game at Pitt.
• The Panthers scored a season-best 27 points off 15 Eastern Washington turnovers.
• Pitt shot 50.0 percent (28-of-56) from the field to improve to 133-5 under Jamie Dixon when shooting 50.0 percent or better from the field.
• The Panthers jumped out to a 19-point halftime lead behind 59.3 percent (16-of-27) shooting from the field in the opening 20 minutes.
• Pitt went 22-of-27 (.815) from the free throw line in the win.
BY THE NUMBERS
• Pitt is 19-4 in the month of December over the past four seasons. Jamie Dixon owns a 76-11 mark in the month for his career.
• Jamie Dixon is one win shy of matching Tubby Smith for most wins through 13 seasons. Dixon currently ranks eighth on the list with 314 wins.
• Pitt is 270-59 against unranked opponents under Jamie Dixon.
• Michael Young is the only player in the ACC to rank among the conference leaders in scoring, rebounds, offensive rebounds, field goal percentage and assists.
• The trio of Jamel Artis, James Robinson and Michael Young has started 42 consecutive games as a unit. Robinson has started 110 of 111 career contests, while Young has started every game (78) of his career. Artis has started each game since the beginning of the 2014-15 season.
• James Robinson owns a career 3.73:1 assist-to-turnover ratio, tops in ACC history (minimum two years and 300 assists). Robinson has recorded more assists than turnovers in 104 of 111 career games. He has been turnover-free in six games and is second in the NCAA with an 8.00:1 assist-to-turnover ratio this season.
• Jamel Artis has scored in double-figures in the first half of a game five times this season. He is averaging 10.1 points on 29-of-46 (.630) shooting from the field, including 11-of-16 (.688) from three-point range, in the opening half of play.
• Pitt's bench has outscored its opposition five times and is averaging 34.4 points per game. The Panthers have had 10 double-figure scorers off the bench. Sheldon Jeter and Chris Jones have three double-digit scoring efforts, while Damon Wilson has a pair of double-digit scoring games.
• James Robinson currently ranks eighth at Pitt with 478 career assists. He has recorded at least one assist in 70 straight games, the third-longest streak in program history.
• Sterling Smith needs 13 points to reach the 1,000-point plateau in his career. He is averaging 9.8 points per game over a 101-game collegiate career.
• Michael Young is tied for fourth in the ACC with four games with 20 or more points scored.
• The Panthers have shot 50.0 percent or better from the field in five of the past six contests and are tied for third in the ACC with a .499 field goal percentage.
• Pitt leads the ACC in scoring (87.0 ppg.), assists (21.3 apg.) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.00:1), while also ranking second in three-point field goal percentage (.418), free throw percentage (.778), field goal percentage defense (.371), three-point field goal percentage defense (.306), defensive rebounds (30.1 drpg.) and scoring margin (+25.5).
• Pitt starters - Jamel Artis, Michael Young, Rafael Maia, James Robinson and Sterling Smith - are a combined 62-of-106 (.585) from the field, including 18-of-28 (.643) from three-point range, over the past three games.
• Pitt has registered 20 or more assists in a game five times and has assisted on 69.1 percent of its field goals. The Panthers lead the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.00:1), while ranking tied for third in assists per game (21.3) and assists per possession (.302) and fourth in assists per field goal made (.691).
• Pitt is averaging 43.2 points per game on 52.7 percent (127-of-241) shooting from the field in the opening half of play through eight games. Pitt's first half numbers are even more impressive over the past three games at 49.7 points on 60.9 percent (53-of-87) shooting.
• Rafael Maia is averaging 7.0 points and 6.3 rebounds per game since joining the starting lineup prior to the Duquesne matchup. He is 9-of-15 (.600) from the field in that span and is coming off his first double-figure rebounding game as a Panther.
• Chris Jones is averaging 12.0 points per game off the bench over the past two contests. He is 7-of-12 (.583) from the field, including 3-of-5 (.600) from three-point range in that span.
• Pitt ranks second in the ACC with a .778 free throw percentage. The Panthers have shot 80.0 percent or better from the charity stripe four times this season.
