After this G-town-‘Nova game, it should be interesting.

2:13: Pitt trails 9-7, 14:52 to the half and Cook heading to the line. Washington has a good start. Hate to sound like sour grapes, but at least 2 of their shots looked like junk going up, but just fell. Pitt looks decent. Like what I’m seeing defensively so far.

2:22: Frustrating on the offensive side. The guards just are struggling with teams playing tight on them on the perimeter. Clearly, no respect for them to take them off the dribble. If Ramon, Fields, Benjamin and even Graves refuse to drive inside, there’s no reason not to play up on them. Washington can risk doing it, despite not necessarily having quick guards because of the size inside.

2:37: In case you are wondering, Sam Young played barely more than a minute before picking up 2 fouls. Like what I’ve seen from Cook in this half. He’s played good defense and is the only one scoring. Gray is shying from contact on offense. Just don’t understand that. He usually responds to the chance to go straight at an opposing big man.
5:47 left, 23-18 Washington.

3:00: Pitt leads at the half 31-28. Hasn’t been pretty at times, but Pitt survived a bad start to get the lead. Cook really kept Pitt in the game early. He has 10 points. Naturally the guards for Washington showed up for this game. Huskies shot 4-6 on 3s. Pitt only 2-8. Pitt struggling on the rebounds — on both sides.

Pitt only shot 9-27, but they have gotten Washington to be sloppy — 10 Husky turnovers, Pitt threw away 4 early but none the rest of the way. Plus, Pitt did finally get the memo about aggressive to the basket — or at least Fields did. The team has already shot 13 FTs (11-13 and Fields was 6-6).

3:15: I can’t believe some of the shots Pitt is managing to miss. The irrational part of my mind is hoping that this will balance out with some stuff that will go down later in a game Pitt needs (not that this is some sort of payback for shots earlier in the year). Pitt leads 39-37.

Gray took a shot to the face getting the rebound, but no call.

3:24: Scary thing. Cook and Young are the only Pitt players with more than a single basket at this point. That seems impossible. 45-45, 11:09 in the game.

3:33: Sean McDonough used to be good as a play caller. Maybe he’s having an off game. Maybe it’s because he’s paired with Wenzel. He is doing poorly with this game. Missing players, not seeing plays and just not calling the action.

3:48: Considering how poorly Pitt is shooting, it’s astounding that Pitt is winning. If they hold on, it will be on the defensive effort.

4:02: So, Pitt wins while being out-rebounded and poor 3-point shooting and not exactly great shooting overall? Instead they get the win with free throw shooting and  getting a slew of turnovers from the other team.

A 65-61 win. I’ll take it.

So, why does it seem to be begging for the game to be completely perimeter based instead. It’s not just the Pittsburgh papers trumpeting the inside game.

But the team that visits the Petersen Events Center this afternoon might own the best frontcourt tandem the Panthers have faced. Washington freshman center Spencer Hawes and sophomore forward Jon Brockman provide a 1-2 punch that has been hard for opposing teams to stop.

“I haven’t seen too many teams with two post guys who can score and rebound the way these two do,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. “They’re very productive. They’re relentless. You’re talking about two kids everyone in the country wanted.”

The 6-foot-11 Hawes is the most-heralded basketball recruit in Washington history and made news when he chose the Huskies over North Carolina last year. He is leading Washington in scoring with 15.1 points per game and has scored 20 or more points seven times.

Brockman, a 6-7 power forward, had been Washington’s most heralded recruit until Hawes arrived. Brockman, who chose Washington over Duke, is second on the team behind Hawes in scoring (14.1 ppg) but is a tenacious rebounder in the mold of Chevon Troutman and averages 9.7 boards per game.

They will be going heads up against what is widely perceived to be the top frontcourt in the Big East Conference in Pitt center Aaron Gray and power forward Levon Kendall. The showdown between Gray and Hawes will be of particular interest, and 20 NBA scouts will watch the projected lottery players.

The Washington papers also expect the inside game to be the story.

“I’m looking forward to it,” said UW center Spencer Hawes of his matchup against Gray, a 7-foot senior center for the Panthers who is regarded as a possible NBA lottery pick in June. “It’s always fun to go up against the best.”

In the loss to Washington State, Washington had trouble finding Hawes inside. In the final 5:33 of a 4-point loss, Hawes never touched the ball on the offensive end. This was surprising, not just because Hawes had 22 points in the game, but UW has been struggling with their perimeter and outside shooting. Their guard play has been less then spectacular despite being highly heralded recruits.

The bad news, though, is that there’s very little offense coming from anywhere else. Ryan Appleby is averaging almost 10 points in his past seven games, but is shooting just 38 percent. Justin Dentmon is 2-for-16 the past two games, and the three freshmen other than Hawes have completely fallen apart. Quincy Pondexter, who led the team in scoring in non-conference games, hasn’t reached double figures in seven straight games, averaging 5.9 points in that time. Adrian Oliver has reached double figures only once in Pac-10 games, and that was 10 games ago. Phil Nelson has one double-figure game in the past 11, going scoreless five times, including the past three.

A little different from the way they were played up in the ‘Burgh papers.

So, no. Don’t expect to see a press and zone like Louisville.

“Teams can try to switch up game plans to try to play more press against us,” Gray said. “But this is what Louisville does. Other teams, they can go away from what they do to try to press us, but it might not work out. And I’m sure it will be an emphasis for us from now on.

“So, I really don’t foresee (a game) like this happening to us again. … It’s just something that we’re going to have to get better at, because teams probably are going to play it more often down the road in the Big East Tournament and NCAAs. And we’ll definitely be ready for it.”

They better. Pitt doesn’t want to be the first top-10 road win for UW since 1974 (they beat Kansas).

Lots of games worth watching today. I mean, aside from the Washington-Pitt game. Lots of games that matter for seeding and bubbles. This is ESPN’s bracketbuster weekend to add to the mid-major fun.
12pm (ESPN): Georgtown-‘Nova — Villanova beat the Hoyas in DC a month ago.

(Fox Pgh/ESPN Fullcourt): Penn St.-Wisconsin: Heh, heh-heh, heh

1pm (CBS): UCLA-Arizona: That #1 seeding and what should be a damn good game.

(ESPN Fullcourt): FSU-Virginia — Two ACC bubble teams

2pm (ESPN): Washington-Pitt.

2:30 pm (ESPN Fullcourt): Iowa-Michigan St. — Big 11 teams on the Bubble

3 pm (ESPNU): Holy Cross-Hofstra — I like any chance to boo Ralph Willard.

3:30 (ABC): UConn-Syracuse — and if you are lucky this will end up on the Full Court where you are instead and you can watch Texas A&M-Oklahoma.

4pm (ESPN2): Southern Illinois-Butler  — the highlight game of bracketbusters.

(various East coast based Fox Sports channels): Seton Hall-WVU — should be a slaughter, but a chance to scout Pitt’s next opponent.
6pm (ESPN): Memphis-Gonzaga — man this one has been harshed by Heytvelt’s suspension for dope and ‘shrooms

(ESPN2): Northern Iowa-Nevada — and this game sounded so good at the start of the season.

9pm (ESPN): UNC-BC — Let’s see, they didn’t show up at home against an inferior Duke team. Now it’s another big game at home. Gak.

(ESPNU): Louisville-Marquette — Marquette’s floundering and Louisville — well, anyways… Find a bar with a satellite because this will be the better game at this time.

Washington is a different breed of dog for Pitt. Even if the match-up isn’t as big as initially envisioned, it is still an interesting thing when teams come from over 2000 miles away for a game.

The Huskies (16-9, 6-8) have stockpiled some terrific young talent. Unfortunately for them, they’re walking into the Panthers’ den after Pitt was stunned at home 66-53 by Louisville. It will be interesting to watch 7-foot senior center Aaron Gray against former five-star prospect Spencer Hawes, who leads Washington in scoring as a freshman.

Hawes has had a rough year, dealing with some injuries.

Life on the trail can be difficult for young Huskies. Washington freshman center Spencer Hawes battled a bad ankle that contributed to the Huskies’ midseason slump that now makes them NCAA tournament long shots (16-9, 6-8 Pacific-10). But his 22-point outing Wednesday against Washington State, even in a losing cause, could give UW reason for optimism Saturday at No. 5 Pittsburgh as he takes on veteran Panthers big man Aaron Gray.

There are rumors that Hawes may go pro after one year.

According to an NBA Eastern Conference scout who has watched Hawes and several other former area high school standouts play in college, Hawes needs to think hard before he decides to leave Lorenzo Romar’s nest for the rigors of the NBA.

…

“He has very good hands, plays well in the open floor for a guy that’s 6-11,” the scout said. “He’s very comfortable with the ball, has a great touch around the basket, nice form with his shot. He is not going to be the quickest or most athletic guy.

“Some guys like Hawes and (Pitt’s) Aaron Gray, those guys were immediately looked at as lottery picks 15 years ago. (But) just because you’re big doesn’t give you that advantage. There are plenty of NBA teams who have won titles without a big center, and if this 6-9 guy is more athletic, they may take him.”

…

“He struggles against the more athletic, quicker big (men), and his rebounding skills are good but not great,” the scout said. “He’s gotta get stronger on his lower body. He’s not that imposing force defensively.”

That sounds good for Gray. As does this from a UDub beat writer:

…Pitt has struggled against teams with quick guards, which unfortunately doesn’t really define what the Huskies are right now.

Seth Davis at SI.com is going with Pitt since UW is only 1-7 in true road games and Pitt should (better) be pissed from the Louisville game. Not that Washington isn’t more than a little frustrated after losing at home to Washington State.

The Huskies fell to 6-8 in the Pac-10. They must finish at least 9-9 in the conference just to be considered for the NCAA tournament. They have five games remaining, four of them against Top 25 foes. They probably need to win four of those games.

They’ll be swimming with piranhas, hoping not to be snacked on, for the remainder of the season. The next carnivorous creature: No. 7 Pittsburgh, a physical, disciplined and defensive-minded foe that figures to be a terrible matchup, especially on the road.

The  last time they traveled east for a non-con game in February, was in 2004. They lost the game to NC State. It’s also the first time they will appear on the ESPN/ABC since Fall 2004.

To be honest, I’m not really as excited about tomorrow’s game as I was back in November and December. Maybe I forgot how important conference games were as opposed to the non-cons. Maybe I figured Washington would be ranked at this point. And after reading what one Huskies fan has to say, I think they might be under that same mindset.

Tomorrow’s game against Pitt is a good exposure game for the Huskies. The impact of that game on the Huskies post season hopes is minimal in my opinion. As long as the Huskies win 3 out of 4 Pac-10 games they will get into the tourney. Winning the game will be great for the RPI and win record, but losing will not affect anything. The Huskies have been hot as of late. If that trend continues then they shouldn’t be worried about an at large berth. The NCAA committee loves to use the last 10 as a gauge for at large berths.

I guess in their spot they don’t have a ton to lose and are more interested in the Oregon game next week.

Can UW’s freshman center, the 6′ 11″ 225 Spencer Hawes, stop Aaron Gray? Other than him they don’t seem to have anyone to match up on him size wise so the Hawes-Gray is probably going to be the key to the game.

And don’t be fooled, Gray is valuable when he’s on the court. Very interesting stuff from the Post-Gazette and Ken Pomeroy.

It is no surprise that Gray is by far Pitt’s most valuable player in terms of plus/minus and on/off rating.

Gray is a plus-19 in the on/off rating, which is calculated per 40 minutes. In the plus/minus ratings, Gray is a plus-312, or an average of 12.5, for the season. The next-closest player is Antonio Graves at 241 (9.6). Gray posted a negative rating in a game only twice this season — in losses to Louisville and Wisconsin.

According to the ratings, Pitt’s least valuable player is sophomore forward Sam Young.

Is this why Young isn’t seeing the kind of time that most would like to see him get? Probably not because I highly doubt Jamie Dixon looks at this kind of thing; or maybe he’s sitting in his office right now looking over those exact stats. Just maybe…

But coming off of a loss, a win is important for the simple fact that the team needs to shake off the bad thoughts. We were given plenty of time to think about Monday’s loss though.

Two practices, three days and four words from their coach — “playing for first place” — served as an ointment for the shell-shocked Panthers.

Pitt spent the past two days of practice and film study working on everything from breaking the press to defending Washington’s formidable inside tandem of sophomore power forward Jon Brockman (6-7, 260) and Hawes (7-0, 250).

Pitt was somehow able to overcome this last week. The fat guy dancing during a timeout down in Morgantown as previously mentioned. If I may quote myself…

Thankfully there were no pictures to accompany this story.

Instead we get a full video. Just grand.

Click here to see a fat man do some dancin’.

And take notice how many people put up a backwards “C”.

As expected Pitt took a tumble in the power rankings that come along. Pitt fell to the 3 seed line on ESPN.com.

Sort of Kansas Lite in the sense that Pitt looks good for awhile and then does something inexplicable, like getting smoked at home by Louisville. I expected more consistent scoring punch from Mike Cook. They need someone to help Aaron Gray.

Range of the votes from 6 to 14.

Luke Winn at SI.com drops Pitt to #14 from 8. I wouldn’t mind so much if it weren’t for the fact that he still keeps Marquette ahead of Pitt — despite what would appear from his comments to be greater concern and questions about the Golden Eagles.

Mike DeCourcy at the Sporting News tries to make sense of a week of upsets and closer than expected calls for a slew of teams this week.

Is it possible it’s something like that for the guys who play the game? In the past week, we saw Pittsburgh, Texas A&M and North Carolina — three of this season’s elite teams — lose at home. And though they lost to capable opponents, they did not lose to elite opponents. Florida fell in a deep hole against an Alabama team that previously treated the road as if it were radioactive. Ohio State nearly blew a 21-point halftime lead at lowly Penn State.

It seems there is a tendency at this time of the year for the best teams to lose focus, because they know how long the year has been and because they know what’s up ahead. Texas Tech at home on a Tuesday night in February does not seem to be as big a deal as the Big 12 tournament and the NCAAs. But on that Tuesday in February, it’s bigger.

It’s comforting, but probably a little too easy.

Remember last spring when Pitt had to replace a slew of assistant coaches? Turns out Dan Hurley was actually one of Pitt’s first choices.

The program Hurley took over six years ago has two teams now, the dominant high school team and a prep team with post-graduate players. Practices are a dizzying showcase of talent, with 22 players, with Division 1 schools recruiting most of them … and some of them recruiting him, too.

Pittsburgh came calling in the spring, with a chance to become a top assistant at one of the hottest programs in the East. He thought about it, but then remembered his days at Rutgers, returning home from recruiting trips and realizing his young son didn’t recognize him.

“I love seeing my family. I love seeing my mom and dad. It sounds corny, but I’ve settled into a lifestyle that means a lot to me,” Hurley said. “To be as good a coach as my dad is next to impossible. I’ll be able to live with that.”

He is the head coach at St. Benedict Prep, the #1 HS program according to USA Today.

It doesn’t say that Hurley was offered the job that Mike Rice, Jr. now holds. It was a chance at the job. From the way I’m reading it, Pitt did come calling to see what his interest was, but it would not have appeared to have gotten past the gaging interest stage. Good to know, though, that Pitt was looking at many possibilities.

Rule 3-2-5-e is one you’ve heard of but it’s almost gone after one year. It’s the one that was used by Wisconsin to make JoePa mad. The one that almost no fan, player, or coach liked. The one that said the clock starts on the ref’s whistle, not the snap on a change of possession. On kickoffs, the clock started once the kicker booted it.

Now a committee who finally used their brains decided it might be time to rework that.

“The changes we made last year, overall, did not have a positive effect on college football at all levels,” said Michael Clark, chair of the committee and head coach at Bridgewater (Virginia) College. “Our charge is to protect the game and do what is best for college football.”

The main rules will be returned to their norm from 2005 however the “new and improved” rules are things like this.

Encourage coaches, officials, game management personnel, media partners to manage the game in a more efficient manner.

Woo, I’m down for that.

And as I mentioned that Carl Krauser was missed as a leader, look at who pumps us up before games now: Austin Wallace! Actually, it says that Marcus Bowman did the same job last year, but still, you need someone who actually plays to keep a team pumped up. A red shirt sitting on the end of the bench during the game does not seem like the best leader to have.

Levance, next year you’ll be a junior. Graves, Gray and Kendall will be gone. Please, please, please step up on the court and lead this team; this means both vocally and with your actions. I don’t care if you’re not the one in the middle of the pregame circle but do it when it matters.

I missed this on Monday, and that was probably for the best, but Gray got some love at SI.com.

The most attention Pitt 7-footer Aaron Gray gets comes from opposing coaches. So why isn’t the Big East preseason Player of the Year, who averages 15 points and 10 rebounds, getting the attention of other centers like, say, Greg Oden? Gray’s game may not be aesthetically pleasing, but there’s no denying he’s consistent. And so much of what he does doesn’t translate to the stat sheet. His drawing of double teams allows Ronald Ramon, Levance Fields, Antonio Graves and Sam Young to get open for threes and he gives the Panthers unparalleled experience in the paint. The knock against Gray is he can’t hit free throws (58.5 percent on the season) and he hasn’t improved to the level many expected when he turned down NBA riches to return to Pittsburgh for one final season. But on Saturday against Providence he showed the heady and dependable play that makes him so dangerous. With the Panthers trailing, Gray picked up his third foul with 16:01 to play, but coach Jamie Dixon kept Gray in the game. Gray responded with one of his most effective halves of the season. He played all but three minutes and scored 13 of his 22 points to put Pitt ahead before leaving after a hard fall with 2:37 remaining. The problem with Gray is everyone expects more and his dependable play has gone underappreciated.

Interesting observation about Dixon taking Gray out of the game with foul trouble.

Q: How much is a star player actually worth to his team?

A: To be revealed later this week. But based on the data I have, I found it interesting when Jamie Dixon went to the coaches playbook and pulled Aaron Gray after he picked up his 4th foul against Louisville last night. Sure, Pitt was down by 15 to Louisville, and the game was slipping away anyway. But there was just over 14 minutes remaining, and at that moment, Jamie Dixon conceded a loss.

Mixed feelings. I get what Pomeroy is saying. It was a conservative, safe move. But since Pitt needed him to get to the point where he would matter, there was just as much support to leave him in the game.

This is about as close as Jamie Dixon has ever come to questioning his players performance publicly.

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said he still doesn’t understand why his team acted as if they hadn’t seen a zone before when Louisville zoned the Panthers in beating them Monday night at the Petersen Center. Pitt played well against Syracuse’s zone but was befuddled by Louisville. As expected, Dixon said when Derrick Caracter plays well for Louisville that changes their dynamic inside because of his ability to take away some attention from David Padgett.

I know this has been hashed, and re-hashed, but it is a good question. Maybe it was the higher level of athleticism, but Pitt really struggled to create the spacing on the court. Zones haven’t really been a big problem most of the year for Pitt.

Seth Davis at SI.com had a listing of seeds and still had Pitt as a #2 seed.

Elsewhere, I might have bumped Pitt down to a No. 3 after getting shellacked at home by a surging Louisville squad, but the teams on my three line still haven’t done enough to move up. (Marquette, which won at Pitt, would have been an easy choice if it hasn’t lost badly at Georgetown.)

And that was before Tuesday night’s activities. Not to mention on Wednesday with Marquette losing to DePaul.

For whatever it’s worth (and it is of questionable value), Dick Vitale lists some of the future great coaches of college basketball and includes Jamie Dixon in the list along with John Thompson III, Tony Bennett, Sean Sutton and Billy Gillispie.

Dixon, in his own style, has created something special with his players. His Panthers understand how to play on both ends. The only gap on the résumé is the team’s inability to get past the Sweet 16.

Something tells me this squad is ready to make a serious run this year. Pitt has a terrific combination in Levance Fields, a real creator, and the big guy in the middle in 7-foot Aaron Gray. I suspect this team will bring a smile to the Pitt cheering section known as the “Oakland Zoo.”

That would be nice.

Now when WVU comes to the Pete, no gay slurs. Get creative with the insults, but keep it classy.
I have to admit, that I was wondering what exactly the Hoopies were screaming at Aaron Gray. No one wanted to actually say it. I suppose I was expecting something relating a little more to Deliverance. You know, something about making him squeal like a pig or such. Nope not even that original apparently.

On Wednesday night, while the Mountaineers were losing to Pitt, students chanted ”Gray’s a faggot” at Aaron Gray.

Yeah, that’s effective.

A nasty paper cut is going to make typing this take twice as long as it should, but the news of celebrity sightings at the Pete have to be mentioned. Monday’s game saw Dallas Mavericks owner and possible Pens/Pirates owner (we all know this’ll never happen) sitting court side. Word has it he might actually be interested in purchasing Pitt and maybe even moving the school to Dallas.

New Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was also there Monday, following Bill Cowher’s steps in attending. Other notable people who have been to the Pete in the last 5 years: Jeff Reed, Jerome Bettis (to support ND mostly), Franco Harris, Mel Blount, Mark Malone, Kordell Stewart, Joey Porter, Hines Ward, Marc Bulger, Dave Littlefield, the late Mayor Bob O’Connor, current Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato, Gov. Ed Rendell, gubernatorial candidate and ex-Steeler Lynn Swann, Penguins owner Mario Lemieux, Pirates CEO Kevin McClatchy and Alex Trebek.

Then we get this quote from Jeff Long.

As Pitt athletic director Jeff Long said of his facility, “It has become the place to be in the cold, winter months in Pittsburgh.”

Pitt basketball might be the place for the stars but for most regular people it’s hard to get a ticket. The hottest ticket in town might be a Pitt game if you like to make a donation on top of your season ticket expenses (or if you’re a celebrity) but to be honest, most people would rather go to a Penguins game than try to find a way into the Pete. With the student rush tickets for Pens games (generally a very good ticket for only $20), more people would say the Igloo is the place to be.

That’s not a big deal though. It’s the fact that Pitt is willing to screw “real” fans who actually care about weather they win or lose in order to bring in big names who don’t really care about the game.

Looking at the actual product on the court though…

I think this is where we miss Krauser. Not his skill set (Fields has filled in much better than most would have ever guessed) but the actual kind of person he was. Monday night, Louisville was able to get pumped up for that game. You can go ahead and say the Cards needed it but it’s not like Pitt has already clinched the Big East regular season title and can afford to lose the rest of their games. Krauser would have been able to bring some life to a team last night that was dead.

Perhaps it’s that Levance feels too young to step up and be vocal. Maybe he’s just naturally not a loud guy. The fact is we really don’t have anyone who can get the emotions going before and during the game.

It’s almost unfair to pick on the articles in both papers about how Pitt’s flaws were exposed by the Louisville loss. How teams will study the tape and use it as a blueprint from here on out against Pitt. I mean, my first thought was, “Duh.”

Of course teams are going to look at the tapes and see stuff on there. Once again, though, few teams can do it like that. Generally speaking, the press is very effective at creating turnovers against a lot of teams. It’s not used by a lot of teams because it is also very difficult to execute well and consistently. Not to mention personnel issues. Not every team can play as deep as Louisville did — and space out the fouling.

It’s like asking Pitt to try and create more turnovers on defense faster. Pressing and going for the steals. It isn’t to the players’ and team’s strength. I was always a fan of the Richardson-Arkansas “40 minutes of hell” style of defense, but that was not nearly so effective when the wrong players were trying to play in it.

I’m not dismissing the articles out of hand. There is stuff in there that makes good points.

The Huskies will pay extra attention to the Louisville tape. They will notice how Louisville switched from a zone defense to a man-to-man whenever Pitt got the ball inside the foul line. The objective was to prevent Gray from passing to a perimeter shooter for a 3-point attempt.

It effectively neutralized Gray’s ability to find the open shooter, one of his strengths.

The strategy worked. Pitt, the Big East’s top 3-point shooting team, was a season-worst 3 of 21.

“When the ball goes inside, they are very smart finding their shooters,” Pitino said. “So, once it went inside, we weren’t going to let it go outside to a shooter.”

But the counter-point is that Pitt will be working on solving that issues. Starting with the next opponent, Washington, you are also talking about a team with players that size and style-wise aren’t anything like the Cardinals.

Still, there were some amusing things.

Pitt has proven in the past that it is more than capable of coming back from seven or nine points down. Once the deficit reaches double digits, however, the Panthers have a hard time getting back into games.

Louisville jumped on Pitt early and led, 13-2, before the game was five minutes old. The Cardinals led by as many as 19 in the first half and 20 in the second half, forcing Pitt into a catch-up mode, something with which the Panthers are neither familiar nor comfortable.

Does the term truism mean anything? It generally doesn’t happen that a team comes back from double-digits. They make a run, they can get close, but it  generally doesn’t happen. That’s why teams don’t like to go down by double-digits. They can comeback, but it ain’t easy.

Has anyone noticed that Ronald Ramon has been in a shooting slump? No. Really. Here are his shooting numbers in total and then on 3-pointers.

Louisville: 1-6 — 1-6

Providence: 0-4 — 0-3

West Virginia: 2-2 — 2-2

Villanova: 0-3 — 0-3

St. John’s: 2-5 — 1-4

Total: 5-20 — 4-18

Obviously no one was complaining or really noticing since Pitt had won the prior 4 games. Besides, he hasn’t been the lightning rod for criticism the way Levon Kendall (as much a reaction to constant media puffery) or Mike Cook (in a slump starting from the ‘Nova game) have become.

I think part of the reason for the slump is that Ramon is now struggling to get open as teams are much more aware of what he can do — and can’t do — so they are playing a lot tighter on him and making it harder for him to get a good look. As we all know, he is not the kind of guard that can create his own space. The other part, of course, is he is just missing shots. Even when he is coming off the screens, lately, the shots just aren’t going. Hopefully that will change — soon.

I have some theories about Pitt fans and the basketball team. I don’t think Pitt fans are unreasonable, overly negative or anything like that. I’m also hesitant to speak in blanket terms — especially in the immediate aftermath of a bad loss, I generally like to give a 24-hour “getting over it” period. But after the comments here and on the message boards I have to write something. The lack of perspective sometimes gets disturbing.

I think, more and more, that Pitt fans treat the basketball season as a football season. It’s kind of natural. Pittsburgh is a football town, and it’s the mentality. Where every loss is the end of it all. All hope for significant post-season is lost. That all flaws are permanently exposed and will be exploited without doubt from here-on out. That the team is doomed to early failure — again.

The basketball season isn’t like that. There are going to be bad nights, regardless of the talent or the coach. (Hell, ask UConn. There are going to be bad years.) There are going to be nights where the shots don’t fall, the team comes out flat. The energy, somehow, someway is inexplicably lacking.
There are also going to be nights where the other team comes out and does everything right. Where they have so much more energy and their execution is flawless and the ball hits right for them.

There aren’t many teams that can do what Louisville did last night for even a little while, never mind a complete game. Louisville hadn’t done it all season. It’s a team that a week ago lost to Villanova and Georgetown — teams Pitt had previously beaten. Pitino is a Hall of Fame coach with great talent and his team lost at home to Dayton and UMass this year.

Pitt has put away WVU in Morgantown by 13. No other team has beaten the ‘Eers in Morgantown this year. Pitt has beaten DePaul in Illinois where the same Blue Demons beat Kansas, and the Jayhawks also lost to Oral Roberts. Pitt lost to Marquette who lost to ND State and fell at home to Syracuse by 12.

I know that some of the anxiety is all about the NCAA Tournament and the seeding. I understand. I was the one who got annoyed over a mock bracket and the assumptions that led Pitt to being a 3 seed. In a mock bracket. The seeding helps in getting the weaker teams to move closer to the Sweet 16 and hopefully beyond. It is also the prestige issue of seeing Pitt on the #2 or even #3 line.

Yes, I know there are bad match-ups teams that will just make things more difficult to play. Or schemes that will give Pitt problems. That will be there regardless of the seed, though.

The thing is, Pitt could still go out in the first or second round. And you know, so could just about every team listed in the top-25. The #1 seeds may almost be set in my mind, but the field is just unpredictable. This Tournament may not have a George Mason but the difference between the 2 seeds and the 9 seeds seem smaller than ever. Even the 1 seeds don’t look that far superior. It just takes one bad game, or one really spectacular game. Regardless of the talent, the system and the coach.

“We Hardly Knew Ye”

The men and women of Pittsburgh are digging up the most depressing clothes they own for tonight’s funeral and reception. The loss to Louisville last night saw the end of our chances at getting the #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

As he (or she…or it…) lay dying in a back room at the Petersen Events Center, suffering from a case of too many turnovers and sloppy play, he uttered the final words, “I hope you guys don’t kill my brother, the #2 seed, too.” Shortly after, as the game clock struck 0:00, so did the clock on his life here in Pittsburgh.

He (or she…or it…) is in much greener pastures now. Places like Pauley Pavilion, the Dean Smith Center, the Kohl Center, the O’Connell Center, and maybe even Value City Arena. We barely knew you, and we can only hope your brother leads us to the same happiness we had hoped to gain from you.

(**Que sad organ music)