Lamar Patterson experiencing Gilbert Brown syndrome

Gilbert Brown (or is it Gil Brown?). Either way, you remember him, right? Uber-talented forward that was capable of dropping 30 one night then going scoreless the next. Brown was always a bit inconsistent, but he had one maddening stretch of a dozen games or so scoring in double figures one game, then barely contributing the next.

Unfortunately for Pitt, forward Lamar Patterson is experiencing a similar streak.

Patterson is having a decent season, but he didn't take the huge leap many thought he would after last year's performance late in the season. And he also hasn't scored in double figures in consecutive games in more than a month. He looked like he might be breaking out in January over a six-game stretch when he averaged about 14 points a game. But ever since then, it's been up and down.

Patterson's scoring over the last eight games since that stretch has been as follows: 10, 7, 12, 9, 19, 2, 11, 6. Patterson's season average is ten points a game, so he's reached that total only half the time. Seven points and nine points aren't bad, but Pitt can't really afford to have him scoring too many games at two like he did in that Notre Dame game.

It's not just the scoring, though. His shooting percentages have been just as streaky. In the double-digit scoring games, Patterson has connected on 51% of his shots. But in the other games, he's made only 32%. Ouch.

The bright spot is that in the games he's scored less, he's had more assists and about the same number of rebounds. So his game isn't completely falling apart when he's not putting the ball in the basket. But for a team in dire need of offense at times, Pitt needs him to be a bit more of a consistent scorer.