Senior night for WVU on top of a desperation must-win game for them. Darris Nichols and Jamie Smalligan will be playing their last home game (unless they lose, in which case there’s always a couple NIT games).

As usual, going into a game that has so much pressure for the NCAA, the coach will try to pretend that it really isn’t that big of a deal and that the Mountaineers are in good shape.

“We need to win two so I’d feel a lot more comfortable,” Huggins said. “But I think we’re fine. I really do.”

I don’t unless they win this game. The Big East offices wouldn’t be thrilled, but Pitt has a chance to flush the NCAA hopes of another Big East team tonight.

For the Big East Tournament seeding, it likely will decide who will be in 6th place in the conference. The 6th place team plays the 11 seed and #7 faces #10. To say nothing of facing the #3 instead of the #2 in the second round. Odds are that the #10 seed will be Syracuse and Seton Hall will be #11 — assuming Syracuse beats Seton Hall on Wednesday.

Keith Benjamin says he looks forward to playing in Morgantown, while  — and I know this will be a shock — Coach Jamie Dixon is upbeat about the team.

For coach Jamie Dixon, things are going according to plan. He said the final two weeks of the season were when he wanted the Panthers to be hitting their stride. He knew Levance Fields would need time to get back into playing shape, and he knew the team would have to readjust to playing with Fields again.

The Panthers are not hitting on all cylinders — their defense has been shoddy at best the past five games — but Dixon believes his team is starting to round into form.

“I’ve been pointing to these last couple of weeks,” Dixon said. “We got Levance back. We don’t have [Mike Cook, Austin Wallace and Cassin Diggs]. This is who we’re going to have. This is the team we’re going to be.

“We need to get better down the stretch. Our goal was to be better the last four games. That’s really been the goal the entire time. We’ve been pointing toward this stretch.”

Other articles. Ronald Ramon: Hoopie killer.

Ramon has averaged 7.9 points per game throughout his career and made 39.4 percent of his 3-point shots.

In seven games against WVU, he’s averaging 10.1 points and shooting 50 percent (15-for-30) from 3-point range. In two victories against the Mountaineers last season, Ramon was 5-for-5 from the floor, 4-for-4 from 3-point range and 6-for-6 at the foul line

He’s been a force defensively, too, and used to give Mike Gansey trouble when they played. Gansey averaged 14.4 points and shot 53 percent in his two years with WVU. He averaged 8.8 points and shot 33 percent in five games against Ramon and the Panthers.

“He gets right up on you and gives you no room,” Gansey said in 2006.

Pitt has won four in a row against WVU and five of eight since Ramon has been eligible. With Ramon in the lineup, the Panthers are 5-2.

Sam Young is getting vocal, and Gilbert Brown took a knee to the hip in the Syracuse game.