Clutch Free-Throw Shooting Propels Deacs to Home Victory Over Pitt

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Wake Forest men's basketball (16-6, 8-3 ACC) stayed composed as a whole during a competitive matchup on Saturday, ultimately downing the Pitt Panthers (14-7, 5-5 ACC) in a 76-74 finish inside LJVM Coliseum.

A trio of Demon Deacons reached double figures in scoring, led by Cameron Hildreth's game-high 24 points. The Worthing, England, native made all three of his attempts from three-point distance while also contributing five rebounds and four rebounds. Saturday featured Hildreth's fifth performance of 20-plus points in 2024-25.

Ty-Laur Johnson had a big second half for his squad, finishing with a season-high 16 points, five assists and two blocks. The lead guard went a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line, swishing most of his attempts during the closing moments of the contest.

Hunter Sallis chipped in 13 points, including a big late triple. He shot 54.5 percent from the floor while adding five rebounds and two steals. Tre'Von Spillers totaled eight points and four rebounds while Efton Reid III tallied six points and six rebounds.

The Deacs put on one of their best shooting displays of the season, going 24-of-46 from the field (52.2 percent). Wake Forest also finished with eight makes from beyond the arc, including five in the final 20 minutes. The team shared the ball well to finish with 12 assists on 24 made baskets.

How It Happened

Hildreth opened the scoring on the Deacs' first possession with a corner three for the 3-0 lead.
- Spillers followed two plays later with a layup to keep the three-point lead.
After Pitt took the lead with a pair of free throws, Hildreth tied it at 7-7 with two free throws of his own.
Out of the timeout, Hildreth found Spillers for a bucket and the two-point lead, 9-7.
- A mid-lane jumper from Spillers on the next possession extended the lead to four.
A three from Harris three plays later extended Wake's lead to five, 14-9.
Buckets from Reid and Friedrichsen out of the timeout extended Wake's lead to seven.
- A jumper from Sallis on the next play made it 20-11, Deacs.
A hook shot from Reid ended a short Pitt run and kept Wake in front by four, 22-18.
Two free throws from Hildreth out of the timeout extended Wake's lead back to four with under eight minutes to go in the half.
- Harris hit another free throw for the Deacs to maintain the lead.
- Johnson also hit two free throws to keep Wake in front by three, 27-24.
- Two more from Reid made it a five-point lead.
The Wake Forest defense held Pitt scoreless for over two minutes of game time.
A corner three from Harris extended Wake's lead back to six with under three minutes to go in the half.
Johnson drove the baseline to get a bucket and retake the 34-33 lead.
Wake Forest went into halftime down two, 36-34.
- Hildreth and Harris led the Deacs with seven first-half points apiece.
- Three different Deacs had three rebounds in the opening 20 minutes.
A three from Johnson from the top of the key kept Wake within two to start the half.
- Another three, this one from Hildreth on the left side, put the Deacs back in front by one, 40-39.
Sallis hit a jumper in the lane on the next possession to put Wake up three and on an 8-0 run.
Two plays later Johnson hit a corner three for the four-point lead.
Hildreth sank a layup and converted the and-one to extend Wake's lead to five.
- Spillers hit two free throws on the next possession to make it a seven-point game.
Hildreth hit his third three of the game to extend Wake's lead to eight.
- Out of the timeout, Hildreth ended a short Pitt run with two free throws to keep the three-point lead.
Hildreth took it to the basket on the next possession to make it a five-point Wake lead.
A jumper from Sallis maintained the Deacs' lead.
- Another jumper, this one from the baseline, from Sallis out of the timeout kept Wake in front by five with under seven minutes to go in the game.
Hildreth hit a last-second jumper from the free throw line to maintain the lead with under five minutes to go.
Out of the timeout, Sallis drained a jumper over three defenders to keep the Wake lead, 65-63, with 2:30 remaining.
- A three from Sallis on the next possession kept Wake ahead, 68-65, with 1:42 to play.
After two defensive stops, Johnson found Hildreth under the basket for the 70-65 lead.
With 20 seconds on the clock, Johnson hit two free throws to go up five.
- Two more free throws from Johnson kept it a five-point game with 16 seconds left.
- Johnson again maintained the five-point lead with two more free throws with nine seconds left.
Wake Forest defeated Pitt, 76-74.

Stats of the Game

The Deacs were exceptional at the free-throw line, going 20-for-22 from the charity stripe.
- The team's 90.9 free throw percentage tied for its best of the year and also now stands as its best mark in conference play.
Cameron Hildreth's 24 points resulted as his second-highest point total against ACC competition this season.
Wake Forest's eight three-pointers tied for its second-best mark in a conference game for 2024-25.

Key Moment

With the game tied at 65 late in the second half, Hunter Sallis hit his first three-pointer of the afternoon before senior Cameron Hildreth finished a fast break layup off the find from Ty-Laur Johnson to give the Deacs a five-point lead with 56 seconds left to play.

Coach's Comments
"Our fans were treated to a high-level college basketball game played by two really good teams. I have to give a lot of credit to Pitt. Jeff Capel's got an outstanding team. They are very hard to guard on defense because they are so good on offense. They have violent drivers at every position and they can shoot the three, so it puts you at a really tough spot. We just couldn't get away from them. We got up nine in the first half and then they went on a 7-0 run after Jeff called a timeout. Then, Hunter [Sallis] and Cameron [Hildreth] both get their second fouls. They took the lead at half because we couldn't get stops and we were pretty stale on offense against their zone.

We made some adjustments at halftime that were pretty key. We squared up more in the second half and that helped us a lot on dribble penetration. Ty-laur Johnson had a really special second half. He made free throws, had four assists, didn't turn the ball over, and he made a really great pass to Hunter for a three to take the lead. That was a really big play. Juke [Harris] made a couple big shots when we needed them. It was a really good team win. Hunter played within himself. He had some foul trouble. Cameron was just all over the floor. He guarded the best player on the floor and he also led the team in scoring. We beat a team that went 20-for-20 from the line, so credit to our team. We battled a lot of adversity this week. We had a tough loss on Tuesday against Louisville. Credit to those kids for having that resiliency. I know every team goes through this, but it's also about how you handle it. Our team handled that adversity with a lot of class, toughness, and resiliency. " - head coach Steve Forbes

Up Next
Wake Forest heads to the West Coast next week for a pair of ACC road contests, beginning with a Wednesday rematch at Stanford.

Tip is set for 11 p.m. ET and the game will air nationally on ESPNU.

Clutch Free-Throw Shooting Propels Deacs to Home Victory Over Pitt

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Team Stats

Cameron Hildreth

Ty-Laur Johnson

Hunter Sallis

Tre'Von Spillers

Players Mentioned

Cameron Hildreth

Ty-Laur Johnson

Efton Reid III

Hunter Sallis

Tre'Von Spillers

Wake Forest Athletics

Clutch Free-Throw Shooting Propels Deacs to Home Victory Over Pitt

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Team Stats

Game Leaders

Cameron Hildreth

Ty-Laur Johnson

Hunter Sallis

Tre'Von Spillers

Players Mentioned

Cameron Hildreth

Ty-Laur Johnson

Efton Reid III

Hunter Sallis

Tre'Von Spillers

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