The No. 19 Georgetown Hoyas (12-5, 1-4 Big East) fell to the No. 5 Pittsburgh Panthers (16-1, 4-0) on Wednesday night at Verizon Center, 72-57.

It was the Hoyas’ third straight loss and fourth in their last five games, as Georgetown shot just 5-of-20 from three-point range and was never able to hit the big shot to swing the momentum in its favor. Pittsburgh junior guard Ashton Gibbs led all scorers with 22 points, including a 5-of-10 performance beyond the arc. Senior guard Chris Wright led the Hoyas with 14 points, while senior forward Julian Vaughn chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds.

“I think we got [Georgetown] on a night where they didn’t make some shots early, especially some free throws, so we were fortunate in that regard,” Pittsburgh Head Coach Jamie Dixon said.

The Hoyas cut a 22-point deficit in half with less than four minutes remaining, but junior guard Jason Clark’s three-point attempt rattled in-and-out, deflating the crowd and closing the curtain on a possible Georgetown comeback.

The Hoyas are now a morbid 22-of-90 from three-point range in conference play. They shot poorly from the charity stripe as well on Wednesday night, making just 4-of-14 free throws in the first half en route to a 41-24 Pittsburgh lead at halftime.

“We have good shooters that haven’t been making shots. That’s just the nature of the game in many regards,” Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III said. “What we have to do is have a balance in the mentality. . It’s a balance between that confidence in yourself and understanding, `Let’s get some penetration, let’s get some post-ups, let’s get to the foul line which will help me get out of that.’ Everyone just needs to get back to basics and get some reps. That’s how we get our confidence back.”

Georgetown was never able to gain that confidence or the eager support of the estimated 15,712 in attendance, including a full student section back from winter break. Sophomore forward Hollis Thompson’s three-point attempt at the beginning of the second half rimmed out, which would’ve cut the Pittsburgh lead to 12. Late offensive fouls by Georgetown in the waning minutes finally ended any hope.

The Hoyas were able to hold the Panthers to 37 percent shooting in the second half after a blistering first period in which Pittsburgh shot 58 percent from the field, including a 5-of-8 mark from three-point range. The Panthers used a 17-6 first half run to open the floodgates, which included three consecutive treys from Gibbs.

After Pittsburgh took a 55-33 lead with 13 minutes remaining, the Hoyas strung together an 18-8 run to pull within 12. While the Panthers’ failed to score a field goal after the five-minute mark, the Hoyas were unable to cut the lead to single digits as Pittsburgh continued to hit its free throws down the stretch.

The Hoyas’ inside presence of Vaughn, junior center Henry Sims and freshman forward Nate Lubick continued its solid play, matching Pittsburgh for points in the paint with 24; they were nearly even on the glass as well with Pitt narrowly winning the rebound war, 34-32. The Hoyas were also able to limit their turnovers to just nine – they committed 59 turnovers in their first four conference games – but were only able to cause four takeaways on the defensive end.

“We can still fight our way out of it, but is it a concern that we’re 1-4 [in conference play]? Yes, it’s a concern,” Thompson III said. “Make a few shots, it solves everything. Get a few rebounds, get a few stops. It’s a simple game: make shots and guard your guy.”

The Hoyas will travel to Rutgers on Saturday for a noon matchup before continuing their New Jersey tour at Seton Hall on Tuesday night.