Your Source for Service Plays and FREE sports Picks

College Hoops | Conference Championships

Product Details

College Hoops | Conference Championships

By Don Phillips

8 Pittsburgh Panthers (20-10, 9-9) vs. 9 Syracuse Orange (19-12, 9-9)
12:00 PM ET, Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Verizon Arena, North Little Rock, Arkansas
ESPN / ACCN

Jamel Artis and Michael Young form one of the top tandems in the ACC. The duo is averaging 30.5 points and has combined for 30 or more points 15 times with a season-best 44 points in a road win over Notre Dame.

Pitt is 12-3 on the season when Artis and Young combine for 30 or more points in a game. Either Young or Artis has led the Panthers in scoring in 25 of 30 games. Young or Artis have scored in double figures in the same game 20 times this season with Pitt compiling a 16-4 record in such outings.

ACC • Top Scoring Tandems

Rk Players (PPG) Tandem (PPG)
1. G. Allen (21.5) & B. Ingram (16.7), Duke 38.2
2. A. Barber (23.4) & A. Abu (12.9), NC State 36.3
3. M. Brogdon (18.4) & A. Gill (13.6), Virginia 32.0
4. D. Bacon (15.8) & M. Beasley (15.7), Florida State 31.5
5. M. Gbinije (17.6) & M. Richardson (13.2), Syracuse 30.8
6. Michael Young (16.1) & Jamel Artis (14.4), Pitt 30.5
7. D. Jackson (15.9) & Z. Auguste (14.5), Notre Dame 30.

Pitt ranks second in the ACC and 15th in the NCAA with a .759 free throw percentage. The Panthers have shot 80.0 percent or better from the line in 13 contests. Pitt has shot better than 70.0 percent from the line just three times in the last 25 seasons.

Season • Free Throw Percentage

Rk Season PCT
1. 2015-16 .759
2. 1990-91 .748
3. 1988-89 .746

NCAA • Free Throw Percentage

Rk Team – PCT
1. Villanova .779
2. St. Bonaventure .777
3. Monmouth .776
4. Connecticut .774
5. Norfolk State .773
6. Denver .769
Milwaukee .769
8. Oakland .766
Northwestern State .766
Incarnate Word .766
11. Davidson .763
Maryland .763
13. George Washington .762
14. Virginia .761
15. Pitt .759

Pitt has had 25 double-figure scoring games off the bench on the year and averages an ACC-best 25.6 bench points per game. Damon Wilson scored a season-high 20 points against Central Arkansas, to match the eighth-most points scored by a freshman off the bench in program history.

Cameron Johnson came off the bench for a career-high 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting against Boston College. He knocked down four three-point field goals in the win.

These two last met on February 20th at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse with the Pitt Panthers winning 66-52 as a 2-point road dog. The total went way UNDER as it closed at 133½. Jamel Artis led the way for the Panthers scoring 21 points, which was equaled as a game high by Orange forward Tyler Lydon. Artis also had 11 rebounds and four assists, going 3 for 6 behind the 3-point line.

You’ll find Pittsburgh a 3½-point favorite at America’s Bookie with the number at 134. Keep it locked at the world’s best offshore sportsbook for all your wagering needs for March Madness.

Selection: Pittsburgh