PITTSBURGH — Xavier Johnson double-clutched as he pulled up from the free throw line in a tie game. The ball left the Pittsburgh sophomore point guard’s hands and hit ... nothing. The miss was Johnson’s 13th of the afternoon. Yet when he turned toward the bench, coach Jeff Capel’s response was not what Johnson was expecting.

“Coach told me to shoot the ball,” Johnson said. “He yelled at me. I said, ‘alright Coach.’”

The encouragement gave Johnson a welcome boost. So he kept right on firing, regaining his stroke in time to lead the Panthers to a 62-57 victory over Miami on Sunday.

Johnson scored seven of his 13 points during a game-ending 11-4 surge by the Panthers (14-8, 5-6 Atlantic Coast Conference), who beat the Hurricanes for the first time since 2014. His 3-pointer from the top of the key gave the Panthers a 54-53 lead. He followed with a 15-foot jumper on Pitt’s next possession and capped the outburst by snaking through the lane for a layup with 40 seconds to go that pushed the Panthers’ advantage to 58-55.

Capel said he’s not in the habit of telling his players to pass up good shots. With the game tied at 51 and less than 4 minutes to play, he provided a reminder.