KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Trae Golden would be happy if college basketball would ditch the possession arrow in favor of actual jump balls, like in the NBA. Then maybe the Volunteers might be talking about their first big upset of the year rather than just another loss.
With just under 4 seconds left and Tennessee down by two points to No. 17 Pittsburgh, Golden took the ball down the court only to have Ashton Gibbs grab for the ball and the referees signal a jump ball with the possession arrow favoring the Panthers. The stop by Gibbs setup a three-point play for John Johnson that sealed Pittsburgh’s 61-56 victory on Saturday in the Big East/SEC Challenge.
“When that tie ball happened, it was like a shot went through my stomach,” Golden said. “I can’t do anything about that. I can’t hang my head on that. It’s sad that something like that cost us the game. Pitt did a great job. It was just a bad luck of the draw.”
With 54 seconds left and the Pittsburgh leading by eight, Gibbs was called for a flagrant foul after elbowing Golden, who was trying to foul him. Golden sank one of two foul shots.
Tennessee retained possession, and Cameron Tatum hit a layup to cut the Panthers’ lead to 5.
Lamar Patterson and Dante Taylor both missed free throws for Pittsburgh, and Golden sank a 3 with 11 seconds left to cut the margin to 58-56. Taylor then missed his second foul shot, which set up Gibbs’ clutch defensive stop.
Johnson, a freshman playing in place of injured Travon Woodall, hit a layup on the break as he was fouled by Skylar McBee and sank the free throw.
“These are the types of games we’ve got to finish in order to become a good team and win big ballgames,” Tatum said. “That’s what good teams do, they win tight ballgames.”
Nasir Robinson had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Gibbs added another 16 points for the Panthers (7-1), who have won five straight since losing to Long Beach State on Nov. 16.
Tatum had 13 points and 10 rebounds and Golden and Maymon each had 12 points for Tennessee (3-4), which has dropped four of its last five. The Vols lost to No. 3 Duke and No. 22 Memphis in the Maui Invitational before dropping another game at Oakland in Michigan.
“Obviously we want to win these ballgames, but it’s good for our guys because you have to learn how to move forward,” Tennessee coach Cuonzo Martin said. “I thought our guys really battled and really defended for the most part.”
The game was a rematch of last year’s Big East/SEC Invitational game at Pittsburgh’s Consol Energy Center. The then-11th-ranked Vols won that one 83-76, handing the third-ranked Panthers their first non-conference loss in their home city in nearly six years.
This installment featured far different lineups but was possibly more physical and definitely more competitive.
The teams traded the lead eight times in the first half alone with two ties. Three times Pittsburgh led by three, the last on a long jumper by Gibbs with 8:26 left before the break.
Tennessee scored the next three baskets to swing the three-point lead to its advantage. Tatum hit a 3-pointer in front of the Panthers’ bench to give the Vols a 26-20 lead with 4:22 before halftime, their largest lead of the half.
After a 2-minute scoring drought, Johnson sank a 3 for Pittsburgh, which scored the last three baskets of the first half to take a 27-26 lead into halftime.
Despite tough defense on both sides, both teams muscled their way inside for most of their baskets. The Vols got 18 of their first-half points in the paint, while the Panthers scored 12.
The first few minutes of the second half was more of the same until Tennessee’s defense began to break down.
That allowed Pittsburgh to get three easy shots close to the basket in a 2-minute stretch. From there, the Panthers took control of the offensive boards and turned a 17-7 offensive rebounding advantage into 18 total second-chance points.
Gibbs, who struggled against the Vols last season, warmed up as well, hitting two jumpers and a 3-point shot in a short stretch. Gibbs followed that up with a long field goal with 5:01 left that gave Pittsburgh a 53-45 lead.
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