Pitt Sweeps North Carolina

PITTSBURGH (AP)  — Xavier Johnson could have chosen a cliche, something about how no one game is more important than any other. Instead, the Pittsburgh point guard went the other way. Two years ago, the Panthers went winless in the Atlantic Coast Conference. On Saturday they completed their first-ever season sweep of North Carolina by using a dominant first half en route to a 66-52 victory. And while the reeling and injury ravaged Tar Heels are a bit of a mess at the moment, they’re still one of college basketball’s blue bloods. North Carolina (8-9, 1-5) has dropped four straight and is just 2-6 without freshman star Cole Anthony, who is nearing the end of his rehab after undergoing knee surgery last month. Despite having a week to get ready, the Tar Heels fell behind by double digits before the game was 10 minutes old and never really recovered. Williams remains stuck on 879 career wins, still tied with mentor Dean Smith for fourth all-time among men’s Division I coaches. If North Carolina can’t develop an offensive identity soon, Williams might have to wait a while before moving ahead of Smith. The Tar Heels committed 16 turnovers and shot just 32% (19 of 60) from the field. Pitt’s defense had something to do with it. The Panthers (12-6, 3-4) swarmed the Tar Heels from the opening tip, cutting off passing lanes and harassing North Carolina into a series of sloppy mistakes. Three times in the first half the Tar Heels were called for traveling, which Williams attributed Pitt’s relentless and a raucous student section that surrounds the court at Petersen Events Center.