Pittsburgh finishes strong, beats Florida State 83-75

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Jamarius Burton and Blake Hinson scored 19 points each, Nike Sibande added 10 points in a key stretch of the second half, and Pittsburgh defeated Florida State 83-75 on Saturday.

Burton hit two jumpers and Sibande added two 3-pointers, giving the Panthers a 64-58 lead with 6:38 left. Sibande added a steal-and-layup and another layup to push the lead to 70-65, then Hinson put the Panthers in control when he hit a 3-pointer for a nine-point lead with 2:35 to go.

Pittsburgh made eight consecutive free throws in the final two minutes before Greg Elliott broke the string by making 1 of 2 with 20 seconds remaining. Pittsburgh made 11 of 14 from the line in the second half, 19 of 23 overall.

Sibande finished with 12 points and Greg Elliott hit four 3-pointers and scored 13 points. Federiko Federiko had 13 rebounds and three blocks for Pitt (18-7, 11-3 ACC).

Jalen Warley scored 23 points, Caleb Mills 16, and Cameron Corhen 13 for Florida State (8-18, 6-9). The Seminoles shot 42% overall but made only 5 of 21 3-pointers. They made 20 of 24 free throws.

Matthew Cleveland, FSU’s leading scorer at 14.4 ppg, scored six points on 2-for-8 shooting.

The Panthers led for the final 18 1/2 minutes of the first half. Their lead reached eight on three occasions, the last when Burton hit a 3-pointer for a 28-20 lead with 6:43 remaining. The Seminoles cut their deficit to two points when Warley's 3-pointer made it 33-31 with 3:09 remaining. It was the final field goal of the half for either team and Pitt went on to lead 37-33 at the break.

The Panthers added to what is becoming their best season since joining the ACC in 2013-14. They won their 11th conference game for the second time since joining the conference and remain in first place. Virginia and Clemson had games later in the day, both with the chance to match Pittsburgh's 11-3 conference mark.

The Panthers have won seven of the past eight ACC games, the only loss being 71-65 against visiting Florida State on Jan. 21. Pitt is 6-1 on the road in ACC games this season.

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