“We overcame a lot of adversity this week, and I thought our team handled the adversity with a lot of class and a lot of toughness,” said Wake Forest Head Coach Steve Forbes.
“You have to give credit to [Wake Forest], they made big shots,” Pittsburgh Head Coach Jeff Capel said. “They made big plays down the stretch, and big free throws.”
The Demon Deacons’ first points of the game came off of a three-point connection from Cameron Hildreth (24 PTS, 3-3 3FG). Hildreth left the matchup against Louisville early due to illness, only playing 22 minutes of Tuesday night’s contest.
In the victory against the Panthers, the Demon Deacons converted seven more shots from beyond the arc — the second consecutive game in which Wake Forest hit eight three-pointers. During their matchups against UNC and Duke, the team only mustered a combined five.
“[Hildreth] was just all over the floor, guarded the best player on the floor and led us in scoring,” Forbes said.
Though illness spread through their roster, the Demon Deacons played a much-needed complete game, starting the game efficiently and playing that way throughout the whole 40 minutes.
However, Wake Forest did not find their path to victory without turmoil.
“[Pittsburgh is] so good on offense, with violent drivers at every position, and they can shoot the three,” Forbes said postgame. “It puts you in a really tough spot. We just couldn’t get away from them.”
While Wake Forest’s 52.2% from the field surpassed their season average (44.4%), Pittsburgh shot 42.9%, eclipsing Wake Forest’s points-allowed average (39.1%). The Panthers were aggressive and finished the game with ten more shots than the Demon Deacons. This effort helped Pittsburgh achieve a 36-34 halftime lead.
“Tonight, I felt like I was just playing more so within the flow of the game,” Hunter Sallis said postgame. “I feel like we’re really good when that happens.”
However, one thing did change in the second half. With under 10 minutes to play, Hunter Sallis (13 PTS, 5 REB) got to one of his hottest spots from the court and drilled from the mid-range. From that point on, he went on to score nine of his 11 second-half points.
Pittsburgh’s Damian Dunn boosted the scoreboard with his season-high 24 points. Despite his performance, Wake Forest was able to prevent a team offensive surge while also boasting their most efficient box score since their 88-78 win over Miami.
Wake Forest heads west next week with a pair of ACC battles against the Stanford Cardinal and California Golden Bears.
