Pitt-St. John’s game prediction

Sunday, 24 February 2013 10:07

Written by Ray Fittipaldo

Pitt-St. John’s game prediction

Season record: 7-7

Pitt has endured its share of problems with talented guards this season, and this afternoon the Panthers must stop one of the top scorers in the Big East if they’re going to snap a two-game losing streak.

D’Angelo Harrison averages 18.3 points per game and is the top scoring threat for St. John’s, which is trying to make a late run to the NCAA tournament. St. John’s is not a one-man team, however. Freshman forward JaKarr Sampson is the top rookie in the league. Sampson, not Harrison, has led the team in scoring in four of the past five games, including a 20-point effort Wednesday night in a win vs. South Florida.

Pitt was subpar defensively against Marquette and Notre Dame. Marquette shot 56.5 percent and Notre Dame, after a slow start, shot 60 percent in the second half. The Panthers must fix their issues on defense and rebounding if they’re going to compete against the Red Storm today.  

While St. John’s has a capable offense, its defense can be had. Pitt’s offense, though, has struggled some in recent weeks and has to bounce back from its worst outing of the season when it scored 42 points against Notre Dame.

It won’t be easy for the Panthers, especially in the post where Chris Obekpa resides. He leads the Big East in blocks and will be a strong deterrent for an already struggling Pitt frontcourt.

This could be a game where Tray Woodall and Lamar Patterson are going to have to hit some outside shots. Patterson is coming off one of his worst games of the season against Notre Dame, when he scored two points and was not a factor.

The Red Storm is at home and needs a victory to stay in contention for an NCAA berth, but the Panthers need a victory for Big East and NCAA seeding.

No one seems to know which Pitt team will show up. The one that won seven of eight and appeared to be one of the top teams in the league, or the one that lost the past two and looked terrible doing so.

I’m not sure if Pitt’s problems can be fixed on the road today against a hungry team that needs the game more. I’ll take the Red Storm.

St. John’s 60, Pitt 55

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