For Justin Champagnie, Pitt’s 79-73 victory over Duke on Tuesday night was about gaining respect – for his team and for himself.
Playing in an almost empty Petersen Events Center, which would have swayed under normal circumstances, Pitt survived a Duke rally that three times reduced a 15 point lead to two in the second half.
Each time, the Panthers (8-2, 4-1 ACC) fought, never lost the lead and took the form of a team that seems to be tired of being trampled and forgotten.
“We didn’t get much credit in this league,” said Champagnie, “and we wanted to go out there and show why we deserve the credit we’ve earned.”
“We were tired. We were tired,” said Pitt coach Jeff Capel. “We didn’t do a good job coming back in the transition. They were at all levels against us, but we were able to maintain our lead.”
Then there is the not-so-trivial question of Champagnie’s duel – at least in his mind – with Matthew Hurt of the duke.
The two players entered the Petersen Events Center as ACC’s top scorers. And you can be sure that Champagnie knew Hurt was first (19.6 points per game) and he was second (18.7).
Champagnie was “incredible” – Capel’s word – scoring 31 points, with 14 rebounds and five blocks. He is the only Pitt player in at least 36 years to reach these three limits. Perfect in all his eight attempts at two points, he hit four out of seven out of three, added two steals and, strangely, missed half of his free-kick (three out of six).
Meanwhile, Hurt managed just 13 points and failed eight of the 13 attempts, allowing Champagnie to take the lead in the ACC (20.3-18.9).
“Before the game, I said to myself, ‘I don’t think he’s any better than me,'” said Champagnie, “and I went there and kind of proved it.”
The victory was Pitt’s first against Duke since 2016 and made Capel the first ex-Blue Devils player to beat Mike Krzyzewski as a coach. He also joins Notre Dame’s Mike Brey as Krzyzewski’s only former assistant to defeat his former boss as head coach.
“Did not know. I never really thought about it. I really didn’t care about that, ”said Capel.
Capel acknowledged that defeating Duke – even when the Blue Devils (5-4, 3-2) are not dominant – is a noteworthy feat.
But Capel played there a quarter of a century ago. He has a lot more work to do to rebuild Pitt’s program that only matters today.
“It is important for our program. It is great for our people, ”he said. “Whenever you’re trying to take the next step and can defeat one of the blue bloods, that’s great.”
Champagnie, just a sophomore, understands the magnitude of the victory.
“We said it’s Duke. All calls always happen your way, ”he said. “We have to fight for all of this. We cannot complain, we cannot attend the referees. We have to move on and fight and that’s what we did ”.
What’s especially important is how Pitt continued to fight back when Duke refused to leave. Jalen Johnson, freshman from Hurt and Duke, a 1.80m striker projected as one of the top 10 choices in this year’s NBA Draft, had 37 points – 27 in the second half.
Johnson did not start after losing the last three games due to a foot injury, but still scored 24 points and 15 rebounds.
“I am very proud of our team, because we beat them when they are different,” said Capel, who was surprised when Duke abandoned his usual man-to-man defense and played 3-2 and 1-2-2 in the zone for the most part. about the game.
“It was kind of weird,” admitted Champagnie.
But surviving Johnson’s gait and athletic build was the biggest victory within a victory. “They are a very different team when he plays like he played today,” said Capel.
In the end, the game boiled down to a handful of important moves in the final 2:03.
After Jordan Goldwire’s layup reduced Pitt’s lead to 75-73 with 2:03 left, Xavier Johnson responded with his own basket and then gave Au’Diese Toney a dunk to set the final score. Johnson almost lost a double / double with nine points and 11 assists.
At that point, it didn’t even matter that Champagnie and Femi Odukale missed four false kicks in the final 15 seconds.
Toney was also “amazing” – again, a description of Capel – with 22 points and 11 rebounds. He had cramps at the end of the game, after he and Champagnie played 39 of the 40 minutes of the game.
“To beat this team,” said Capel, “you have to fight for 40 minutes.”
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Jerry DiPaola is a staff writer for the Tribune-Review. You can contact Jerry by email at [email protected] or via Twitter .
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