One game at a time. One game at a time. Let’s not worry about Elite 8 or failure stuff yet (we’ve kind of talket that to death all season anyways).
Um, if you want to see the ETSU-Pitt match-up, there’s a good chance you can get tickets — cheap.
Do the UD fans who bought tickets for tourney games at the Arena use their tickets Friday afternoon to watch the Pittsburgh Panthers, a No. 1 seed, or do they find a TV and watch the Flyers play West Virginia in Minneapolis?
Both games start at about 3 p.m.
“I am angry,” said Steve Waddell, a Bellbrook resident who called the NCAA to complain about the scheduling conflict. “I can’t believe that is not part of the standard operating procedures. I think it had to be a terrible oversight or mistake on their part.”
UD Arena hosts four games Friday, two in the afternoon and two at night. Each session requires a ticket with a face value of $66.
Here’s your standard article regarding a #16 seed. They just want to play. They won’t be intimidated.
There was little sign that ETSU was four days away from facing the Pittsburgh Panthers and one of biggest first-round challenges in the NCAA Tournament. Little sign that the Bucs were intimidated or scared straight. And little sign that East Tennessee State (23-10) prepared to treat its East Region contest against the Panthers (28-4) as anything other than what it is: a game. And that’s just the way Bucs coach Murry Bartow wants it.
“All I can do for our team is get our team ready to play,” Bartow said. “We can’t get overly concerned with who we’re playing. Obviously, we’re playing one of the best teams in the country, and it’s a hard matchup because of [their] strength and size. But all we can do is keep keeping on; keep doing what we’ve been doing.”
Hopefully the players mean what they say about being a #1 seed and not taking anything for granted.
“I definitely don’t want to say that having a No. 1 seed is going to make anything easier,” senior Sam Young said, “because I almost don’t believe it because we’ve been upset so many times.”
Other No. 1 seeds went to Louisville — which also is playing in Dayton — North Carolina and Connecticut. The Big East is the first conference to have three No. 1 seeds.
“(Being a No. 1 seed) is a great thing,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. “But it doesn’t mean anything at this point. There are 65 teams and every one of them thinks they can win it.”
Okay, just one little look ahead. Tennessee is not happy with its draw.
“We’re not looking ahead, I can guarantee you that,’’ said Pearl who has guided the Vols to the NCAA tournament in all four years of his UT tenure. “Oklahoma State has about the 19th RPI; they’re probably the toughest No. 8 seed in the tourney.’’
The Cowboys went on a season-ending run that included wins over Big 12 powerhouses Texas (68-59) and Oklahoma (71-70) before they fell to eventual conference tourney champion Missouri (67-59) on Saturday.
“Oklahoma State won eight of its last 10 and they shoot 38 percent from three,’’ Pearl said. “They’re very guard oriented and very athletic.’’
The Cowboys run a four-guard offense — just like the Mississippi State team that defeated the Vols 64-61 in the St. Pete Times Forum on Sunday afternoon to earn the SEC’s automatic bid.
I love that everyone — player or coach– by the way, feels they have the toughest path in the NCAA Tournament. It is almost standard.
“I think we have the toughest bracket,” Jermaine Dixon said. “But it’s really not a problem for us. Pittsburgh is always in a tough bracket, so we kind of expected it.”
Pitt has not advanced to a Final Four since 1941 and has not reached the Elite Eight since ’74.
The Panthers, who are making their eighth consecutive appearance in the tournament, have experienced some bitter disappointments in the past few years, including an early exit at the hands of Michigan State in the second round last season when many predicted a deep tournament run.
The expectations are even higher this season. The Panthers are being picked as one of the favorites to win the national championship.
“We got the No. 1 seed,” sophomore center DeJuan Blair said. “It’s not over. We have a long way to go.
“This is a long march. We’re going to have fun.”
Yes. Winning is fun. To quote Ebby “Nuke” LaLoosh, “I love winning. You know what I mean? It- it’s like better than losing!”
When it comes down to it, all of them are equally hard to win. Does Pitt have the easiest road to the Final Four? Analysts seem to think so but I’m not sold on it. Really, after the first round, I think any team that we have the possibility of playing *could* beat Pitt.
Pitt is the best team overall in the country, but it’s not without its weaknesses. We’ve heard a million times that all Pitt needs to do is keep Blair out of foul trouble to win. The same people seem to think that a Blair foul trouble is a for-sure loss.
I don’t see either scenario to be inherently true. Sure, the numbers are very telling — but that doesn’t stop the fact that the rest of the team screwed the pooch in those losses.
In our four losses, our FG% as a team averaged 41%, the lowest being a 34% against Louisville. Blair’s fault?
One can argue that his knack for offensive rebounds would lead to more high percentage shots. But lets face it, Pitt wins as a team and loses as a team.
They could possibly not even reach the Sweet Sixteen. And just as possible, they could win the national title.
The beauty of March Madness is that of the Nation’s 46 best teams (and the 18 or whatever single bid conference teams), only one will go into next season with a winning streak intact.
You’re right, though, Chas, when you say that the best we can do is focus on one game at a time. No underestimating the Bradleys or the Mich. States or the Pacifics of the world (the last of which is responsible for the fist-sized hole in my old bedroom).
All that aside, I have Pitt winning the National Championship. Will they? Probably not. Am I a homer? Absolutely.
Let the Madness begin.
Hail to Pitt!
Pitt just needs someone to get a hot hand and carry them. That hasn’t happened in the past – actually, what has happened in the past is everyone crapping the bed simultaneously.
Bottom line, Pitt just needs to go out and play like we know they can.
This season is different. Sam Young and DeJuan Blair can get 25 or 30 points in a game. Levance Fields can hit the big shot when necessary, but has the weapons to distribute the ball and not have to carry the scoring the way Carl Krauser had to.
It is nice to have weapons. It is nice to have some real talent that can do some damage. If our Big 3 show up in their respective roles (passing, scoring, offensive rebounding) then this is a tough team to beat. But any of the three are capable of carrying the team in the absence of one or two of the others.
This is Pitt’s best chance and lets hope they make good on it. I wouldn’t mind taking a vacation to Detroit.
I personally look for Jermaine Dixon to be a key. His defense is a given but if he can also hit a couple threes and drive to the hoop, that could make all the difference. Making plays like that is key in the tournament.
Oh, and maybe Wannamaker will get hot and play like he did in the Villanova game where he couldn’t miss – and not like he has in other games where he misses layups, throws alley-oops 40 feet over the backboard and collects fouls faster than anyone in human history not named Gary McGhee.
We have three legit stars on this team. You are right that they need to show up and play. But it is just nice to be in a position to have the kind of stars needed to get to the final four.
A stat shown on EPSN the other day was that 20 of the last 21 national champs have had 2 NBA players on their roster. In the last 8 years including this season, this is the first year we could legitimately say that Pitt has 2 NBA players.
I think the defense will be fine. Gunn or Lindsey will fill the slot in the middle and everywhere else looks pretty strong.
But the offensive outlook is really horrible. Mostly the same cast of characters as last year, except they’ve lost an NFL quality RB. Scary QB situation, unproven RBs, unexceptional WRs and a line that doesn’t scare anybody. Hard to feel optimistic; they better play some low-scoring games.
The statistic being sighted was that you’ve got to have two NBA-caliber guys, playing like NBA-caliber guys on the floor at the same time. If you’re interpreting it or reading it differently the statistic is meaningless. We didn’t have 2 NBA players on those teams though. Sam Young wasn’t the player in his freshman and sophomore campaigns (even if he was mis-used)that he became in his junior and senior seasons (the 2 season’s without Gray). In fact, he barely played…tough for a guy to have an impact when he’s on the bench. This is the first year we’ve had to legitimate NBA-caliber guys on the floor at the same time since Blair is a more dominant and complete player this year.
As for Wannamaker, he has been an incredibly pleasant surprise. I’m not sure why everyone is giving him a tough time on here. In some pretty big games he has played with a ton of confidence and provided us with the spark we need.
Former Pitt running back LeSean McCoy put on a show today during Pitt’s Pro Day at the UPMC Sports Complex. McCoy along with his other teammates were working out for all 32 NFL teams in hopes of improving their draft status. My sources tell me that McCoy certainly did that and could’ve cemented himself as a 1st round pick. McCoy dazzled everyone by running a 4.4 in the 40. That 40 time combined with his body of work while at Pitt has to make him a 1st round selection. Prior to today, most NFL mock drafts have McCoy being drafted at the end of the 1st round. The team linked most to McCoy is Arizona. We’ll have more on McCoy tonight on KDKA-TV Sports at 6 pm
TJ got the point of the stat cited. Of course we had Sam Young back with Aaron Gray; but Sam Young wasn’t an NBA prospect then. It wasn’t even clear he would ever be a starter for Pitt at that point. And Gray is an NBA player, but mainly because he is 7′ tall.
The fact is, even last year most of us as Pitt fans weren’t sold that Young would make it in the NBA if he left last year. Blair definitely wouldn’t have.
This is the first year they have 2 NBA caliber (and barring injury, highly rated NBA prospect) type players who actually play and actually look ready to head to the NBA. Comparing Gray and a freshman, bench riding Sam Young to Young and Blair this year doesn’t even make sense.
Claim: Pitt is better off in this NCAA Tournament this year because they have two NBA prospects that people think will get drafted based on their play this year.
Warrant: A lot of the past NCAA Tournament champions have had at least two NBA players on their team.
Conclusion: Pitt could win the NCAA Tournament, since they fit that model of having at least two NBA players.
Response from maz: Pitt fit that model every one of the last four years.
Response from you guys: Yeah, but you’re missing the point, these guys are more NBA-y than those other guys.
Response from maz: That may be, but it has nothing to do with the stat.
Maz, I’m really not sure what you’re arguing. It’s completely ridiculous to count Aaron Gray/Sam Young as an NBA combo. I’m not even sure its a “statistic” we’re talking about here, which is why I think you’re missing what its all about. I think Coach Calhoun said something along the lines of needing at least 2 guys who could have a cup of coffee in the NBA to win the title. Not sure why you’re bringing up Marquette since they did not win the championship. Of course there are many teams out there who have two-NBA guys at a time on the team at the same time.
That being said, I completely disagree with your conclusion that Pitt fit the model everyone of the last four years. It’s not about being “NBA-y”. You’ve got to have a couple of NBA-ready guys. So if Sam Young was the player he has been the last two years when we had Aaron Gray, then yes, Pitt would have fit the model. But they don’t.
I think this is a ridiculous argument.
“A stat shown on EPSN the other day was that 20 of the last 21 national champs have had 2 NBA players on their roster. In the last 8 years including this season, this is the first year we could legitimately say that Pitt has 2 NBA players.
Comment by The Prowler 03.17.09 @ 1:46 pm ”
The stat is about players ON THEIR ROSTER. My point, from way up there, remains: this stat is not really all that special. My point to back that up is that Pitt has had at least 2 NBA players on their roster in all of those years. You can talk about how well those players are playing at the time all you want, but that ISN’T THE STAT. That’s the point. Don’t use the stat to convince yourself that since Blair and Young are really good THIS YEAR, we’ll win. We may win, and it will probably be for that reason, but there is no link between that and the stat. Period.
I don’t think you could have legitimately said that 4 years ago. Maybe you can right now about 4 years ago. But you couldn’t have then. And that was my point. I didn’t guarantee us anything because “we have 2 NBA players on our roster.” I was saying that we have reason to be excited about this team; our program has come so far in the last 8 years that we have had really great teams, but nothing that compared with the NBA potential we enter this tourney with.
And of course I quoted the stat off the top of my head after hearing on tv, so the original stat may or may not have been “on their roster” vs. “people who actually impact the game being played”. All of that is irrelevant since the point was, “Hey, we as Pitt fans have a good reason to actually hope for a good tourney this year because we really have a talented team.” As Pitt fans, I am not sure why you are wanting to argue about that point.
FWIW, my prediction is that if Pitt dooesn’t lose to Okla St in 2nd round, they will make the Final 4 after a close win over Duke or ‘Nova.