It seems that won’t change.

“We just need to be on the court more and more and practice more and more,” Troutman said. “Guys are going to get better the more we’re on the court. They’re picking up some of the stuff they really didn’t know about, how to trail someone off a screen, how to guard a shooter and a non-shooter, stuff like that.”

First-year players John DeGroat, Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin are still learning Pitt’s system. Players such as Antonio Graves and Yuri Demetris are playing extended minutes for the first time in their careers.
…
The question about the defense this season lies in how Dixon will replace Julius Page and Jaron Brown, two of the best defenders in recent school history, who shut down the perimeter for opposing teams the past four years. When Pitt plays stiffer competition, will the shutdown defender be Krauser? Or Graves? Or Benjamin?

That answer likely won’t be known until the Big East schedule begins next month.

Troutman is still a defense first guy on the team. He seems to genuinely enjoy fighting down low for the ball and using his frame to keep the other side’s interior players away from easy baskets. His defense and high percentage shooting is part of why he is probably my favorite player on this Pitt team.

Of course, Troutman is not a particularly tall man by NBA standards to play inside, so he is really attracting attention from NFL scouts.

NFL scouts have taken notice of Troutman’s chiseled, 6-foot-7, 240-pound body, his more-than-adequate speed, his 86-inch wingspan and his soft hands.

Tight end, anyone?

“I’ve talked about it a lot, and I know I could play (in the NFL),” Troutman said Thursday. “People have approached me, too. Some people from the Atlanta Falcons, the (New York) Jets and some dudes from (the Arizona Cardinals). They said they could turn me into a football player if basketball doesn’t work out.”

By that, Troutman meant that scouts have indicated to him that he is an NFL prospect. Perhaps, he could follow in the footsteps of 6-4, 260-pound San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates, who played only basketball at Kent State and now is an NFL star.

Indianapolis Colts tight end Marcus Pollard preceded Gates’ path to the NFL as a basketball player with no collegiate football experience.

Ex-Pitt basketball star Sam Clancy followed the same path and had a long and productive NFL career.

Not that the NBA scouts are completely ignoring one of the best interior defenders in college basketball. He appears to already have his ticket punched for an invite to the “Portsmouth (Va.) Invitational, which essentially is an NBA tryout camp and begins the Wednesday after the Final Four.”

Saturday is the annual City Game between Pitt and Duquesne.

A very short Pitt B-Ball Q&A with the P-G beat reporter (I’m guessing not a lot of questions with all of the focus on the Pitt football team. Someone asked about McCarroll. The response was almost like a follow-up to the articles about McCarroll‘s lack of playing time right now.

FITTIPALDO: McCarroll isn’t seeing the minutes he did last season because of several circumstances. Coach Jamie Dixon likes the combination of Yuri Demetris and John DeGroat at the swing position, which leaves McCarroll in pretty much the same role he had last season – Chevon Troutman’s backup. It’s tough to crack the lineup when Troutman is playing so well. The other factor is the competition. Dixon is playing a lot of players during this early-season run against lightweight teams from lightweight conferences. He knows what McCarroll can do for him, and I think he’s just trying to get a feel for what he has in other less experienced players. McCarroll played too well too often last season for him not to play a more prominent role on the team this season. In time, I believe McCarroll will emerge and make some bigger contributions.

A good point. I was attributing a lot of it to McCarroll not playing enough defense, which I still think is part of it. But the fact that he is much more of a known quantity to Dixon, so it may not be as essential early in the season to get him minutes.