Ishmael Leggett scored 21 points on Saturday night, helping Pitt stay unbeaten in Atlantic Coast Conference play with an 83-68 victory over Stanford at home.
Leggett also grabbed six rebounds for the Panthers (12-2, 3-0 ACC), who shot 56.4% from the field. Jaland Lowe contributed 16 points, five assists, and four steals, while Guillermo Diaz Graham scored 12 points, and Pitt held a 34-23 advantage in rebounds.
Maxime Raynaud led the Cardinal (9-5, 1-2) with 21 points, but didn’t get enough support. Chisom Okpara came off the bench to score 14 points, while the rest of the Stanford starters, excluding Raynaud, only managed 18 points. The Cardinal struggled with their shooting, making just 35.3% of their attempts, including 9 of 28 from 3-point range.
Pitt’s turning point came late in the first half and carried over into the first few minutes of the second half. Raynaud hit a 3-pointer with 5:11 left in the first half to give Stanford a 28-26 lead, but the Panthers responded with a 12-2 run to end the half.
Lowe nailed a 3-pointer with four seconds remaining, putting Pitt ahead 38-30 at the break.
In the second half, Pitt quickly built a bigger lead, using an 11-2 run that was capped by a 3-pointer from Diaz Graham. This gave the Panthers a 49-32 lead with 16:07 left. Pitt later pushed the lead to as much as 21 points in the final five minutes.
Zack Austin added 11 points for Pitt, who will face No. 4 Duke on Tuesday in their next ACC matchup. The Panthers have won five games in a row, scoring 83 or more points in four of them.
Stanford stayed competitive for most of the first half behind Raynaud, who scored nine of his team’s first 11 points. The Cardinal led 18-9 after a 3-pointer from Jaylen Blakes at the 12:16 mark. Stanford still led by nine with 8:02 left in the first half before Pitt took control for the remainder of the period.
