The good thing about both of Pitt’s losses this season. There hasn’t been a lot of time to between the loss and the next game. Notre Dame tomorrow at noon. I expect it to be tough. The Domers have lost four straight. They have to be desperate. The scouting report is simple. You stay one-on-one with Harangody — he’s going to get his double-double — but completely shadow Kyle McAlarney. Keep him from getting free and dare anyone else on Notre Dame to beat you.

I guess in the big picture, it’s good for the Big East that Villanova got the big win. They were severely lacking in quality wins, so that helps their NCAA Tournament resume.

Bad shooting in the second half — yes, techincally, Pitt shot a decent 9-20 but they were 0-8 on 3s — was created in no small part by settling too much for jump shots. Credit the ‘Nova defense with a good portion of that. They really locked down in the second half to stop the penetration.

The other part of the problem for too much jump shooting was no one inside with Blair hit with foul troubles. Only one foul upset me as being a weak call. The bigger problem was Blair not being smart when drawn outside. It’s one thing to bump a bit inside, especially against another big guy. It is something very different to be out in space from the basket and knocking a guard off.

There is still no reason to panic. I do wish the team would show more in adjusting to how the refs are calling the game. The team is saying the right things, but they actually have to do it.