Pittsburgh finishes strong, beats Florida State 83-75

Feb 11, 2023, 11:28 pm

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- — Jamarius Burton and Blake Hinson scored 19 points each, Nike Sibande added 10 points in a key stretch of the second half, and Pittsburgh defeated Florida State 83-75 on Saturday.

Burton hit two jumpers and Sibande added two 3-pointers, giving the Panthers a 64-58 lead with 6:38 left. Sibande added a steal-and-layup and another layup to push the lead to 70-65, then Hinson put the Panthers in control when he hit a 3-pointer for a nine-point lead with 2:35 to go.

Pittsburgh made eight consecutive free throws in the final two minutes before Greg Elliott broke the string by making 1 of 2 with 20 seconds remaining. Pittsburgh made 11 of 14 from the line in the second half, 19 of 23 overall.

Sibande finished with 12 points and Greg Elliott hit four 3-pointers and scored 13 points. Federiko Federiko had 13 rebounds and three blocks for Pitt (18-7, 11-3 ACC).

Jalen Warley scored 23 points, Caleb Mills 16, and Cameron Corhen 13 for Florida State (8-18, 6-9). The Seminoles shot 42% overall but made only 5 of 21 3-pointers. They made 20 of 24 free throws.

Matthew Cleveland, FSU’s leading scorer at 14.4 ppg, scored six points on 2-for-8 shooting.

The Panthers led for the final 18 1/2 minutes of the first half. Their lead reached eight on three occasions, the last when Burton hit a 3-pointer for a 28-20 lead with 6:43 remaining. The Seminoles cut their deficit to two points when Warley's 3-pointer made it 33-31 with 3:09 remaining. It was the final field goal of the half for either team and Pitt went on to lead 37-33 at the break.

The Panthers added to what is becoming their best season since joining the ACC in 2013-14. They won their 11th conference game for the second time since joining the conference and remain in first place. Pittsburgh and Virginia, which defeated Duke 69-62 in overtime, are tied for first place. Clemson dropped out of first place after a 91-71 loss to North Carolina.

The Panthers have won seven of their past eight ACC games, the only loss being 71-65 against visiting Florida State on Jan. 21. Pitt is 6-1 on the road in ACC games this season.

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