Andrien White made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 3:55 remaining and Wake Forest clung to the lead despite scoring only three more points in a 69-65 victory against host Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon.
Wake Forest center Olivier Sarr blocked Trey McGowens' shot that would have tied the game in the final seconds.
The Demon Deacons, who picked up a rare Atlantic Coast Conference road victory, received 14 points from reserve Ismael Massoud and 12 points from reserve guard Torry Johnson. Chaundee Brown added 10 points and White had nine points (all on 3-point shots).
After White's late 3-pointer, the Demon Deacons didn't score again until Isaiah Mucius made a free throw in the final seconds. In between, Pittsburgh only scored on a McGowens layup with 3:06 left, and then was blanked the rest of the way.
After Sarr's blocked shot, Brandon Childress tacked on two free throws for the final points for Wake Forest (8-5, 1-2 ACC), which has followed a three-game losing streak with three consecutive victories.
Ryan Murphy paced Pittsburgh (10-4, 1-2) with 18 points, while McGowens finished with 12. Xavier Johnson and Justin Champagnie each scored 11 points.
Wake Forest overcame 14 turnovers, but Pittsburgh shot only 39 percent from the field.
Johnson, a reserve guard, had seven consecutive Wake Forest points as the Demon Deacons went up 45-44 with less than 13 minutes to play.
Wake Forest used a 10-0 spurt hold a 57-49 advantage with about eight minutes remaining.
Pittsburgh led 30-27 at halftime despite shooting 36.4 percent. Wake Forest received 11 first-half points from reserves and ended up with 32 points from its bench players.
The game was Wake Forest's first in two weeks. The Demon Deacons were without guards Sharone Wright Jr. and Michael Wynn, who sat out a one-game team-imposed suspension.
--Field Level Media
Wake Forest | Pittsburgh | |
Ismael Massoud 14 | Scoring | Ryan Murphy 18 |
Brandon Childress 6 | Assists | Xavier Johnson 6 |
Chaundee Brown 7 | Rebounds | Justin Champagnie 8 |
Torry Johnson 6 | Free Throws Made | Xavier Johnson 4 |
Chaundee Brown 1 | Steals | Trey McGowens 2 |
Olivier Sarr 2 | Blocks | Terrell Brown 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Wake Forest | 69 | 46.7 | 9-23 | 18-25 | 15 | 32 | 3 | 3 | 14 |
Pittsburgh | 65 | 39.0 | 7-21 | 12-16 | 14 | 31 | 2 | 6 | 8 |