Today we’ll hit some accumulated basketball stuff — some of which is more than a little dated, though still relevant.

In addition to Cameron Wright getting a tryout for the USA Basketball U19 team, Ashton Gibbs is going to take another shot at being on Team USA. This time with the USA’s squad for the World University Games.

No real downside for Gibbs. If he makes the team, it will likely be a chance for Gibbs to show NBA (and Euro) scouts his game in a different situation and style.

Chaminade hired a new basketball coach. Relevant? Not really, other than the fact that Coach Dixon recommended him to the Hawaii school. Dixon remains really big in Hawaii.

New Pitt assistant coach Bill Barton lived in Pittsburgh for 4 years as a Duquesne assistant. Last year he was in West Virginia. You would think that he wouldn’t have a hard time reacclimating himself to the area.

New Pitt men’s basketball assistant Bill Barton went house hunting in the North Hills last week, and he might be signing a long-term lease.

While Pitt coach Jamie Dixon has watched a stream of assistants depart for head coaching jobs in recent years, Barton, hired in mid-April, hinted at providing stability on the Pitt bench.

“Being a head coach is not what drives me,” he said. “I don’t live every day with the idea that I’ve got to get a head coaching job. If a few years from now, it presents itself, fine. But it’s not something I pursue every day. If this was the pinnacle of my career, I’d be fine with that.”

Yet he would rather lease than buy? His preference, I guess.

Scout.com updated its recruiting rankings a couple weeks ago. Pitt is in line with most of the other rankings at 12th (5th in the Big East).

The addition of Birch to their 2011 class is a big deal. He’s a top 10 prospect with elite athleticism. Gilbert continues to improve and is a force defensively.

And as you would expect, Khem Birch is expected to be one of the top Big East newcomers.

Khem Birch, Pittsburgh, F — Initially tabbed as the No. 2- ranked recruit in the Class of 2012, Birch decided to forgo an intended postgraduate year and reclassify to the Class of 2011. The 6-foot-8, 210-pound Montreal native is one of the highest profile recruits of the Jamie Dixon era. He should make an immediate contribution to a top 10-caliber team.

Somewhere in the top-10 to -15 seems to be where Pitt is being projected in early top-25s. And once again, expected to compete to win the Big East. This despite most people not knowing the players on this team aside from Ashton Gibbs. Just part of the raised expectations for Pitt basketball under Coach Dixon.

Here’s a decent capsule preview of Pitt for next year.

It’s a testament to the work Jamie Dixon has done at Pitt that he can lose two of his top three scorers, his top two rebounders, and his top assist man and still be considered a Top 15 team.  The contributions of Brad Wanamaker (second in scoring and rebounding, first in assists and steals), Gilbert Brown, and Gary McGhee (first in rebounds and blocks) will surely be missed, but much like Wisconsin, the Panthers have cultivated a “next man up” philosophy, which affords them remarkable consistency over time.

The good news is that Ashton Gibbs opted to return to school instead of remaining in the NBA Draft, and there are five other guys who played at least 11 minutes per game last year.  Gibbs parlayed his terrific shooting (49 percent – that’s right, 49 percent – from deep) into a team-high 16.8 points last season and should build on that as a senior.  He’s joined in the backcourt by Travon Woodall whose 3.4 assists were second on the team, but he needs to improve upon his poor shooting percentages so defenses can’t slack off of him.

The frontcourt duties will fall to the likes of Nasir Robinson, Dante Taylor, and Talib Zanna.  At just 6-foot-5, Robinson is a bruiser inside who pounds the glass, particularly on the offensive end.  He finished strong with double-digit scoring in eight of the final 11 contests and should build on that this season.  Taylor came in as a highly regarded recruit but has yet to live up to that billing for long stretches.  With McGhee gone, Taylor’s 15.1 minutes per game should increase greatly, and his 4.5 boards should do the same.  A field goal percentage better than 61 percent bodes well for Taylor’s scoring, too.  Zanna saw his playing time dwindle as the season went on before missing the last seven games with a thumb injury.  Wing players Jonathan Moore and Lamar Patterson also return.  Moore is the guy I’m keeping an eye on as a potential breakout candidate as he looks to replace Gilbert Brown.

The Panthers also boast the top-rated incoming freshman in the Big East as big man Khem Birch joins the team.  His offensive skills are still developing, but his size and athleticism will allow him to contribute immediately with rebounding and shot-blocking.  There was some concern that Birch might back out of his commitment when assistant Pat Skerry, who was key in his recruitment, left to coach Towson.  Birch is joined in the freshman class by another highly rated big man in Malcolm Gilbert, yet another rugged player who can rebound and block shots.  Durand Johnson projects as a strong defender with a solid midrange game who should develop nicely as he adds strength, and redshirt freshman Cameron Wright could back up Gibbs as well.

Backcourt depth is probably the biggest issue for the Panthers, but toughness is a constant for Pitt, which should be among the conference’s top teams yet again.

Penn State made what I thought was a smart/good hire for basketball in Pat Chambers. The former Villanova assistant and Boston U head coach of the past couple years has a tough road ahead. He was briefly asked in his introductory press conference about playing Pitt.

Under Ed [DeChellis], Penn State stopped playing Pitt because he said he wanted to play non-conference games in more fertile recruiting areas. Will you be interested in renewing a series with Pitt?

I consider Jamie Dixon a friend and he runs an incredible program. I would definitely say that’s something we’d look into to get a little rivalry going.

Brief aside, really? That was the claim? Back before the last time both teams played, DeChellis actually claimed that Pitt needed a home date for the following year. Did Penn State actually play non-con games in more fertile recruiting areas? I guess the home-and-home with Temple fits that. Otherwise, there really weren’t any non-con road games to more fertile areas. (I don’t count road ACC games that are part of the ACC-Big10 Challenge since those games are not under PSU’s control).

I am of the opinion that Pitt and Penn State should play each other in just about every sport. It just makes too much sense. What kind of astounded me was how PSU partisans — while being appearing to have interest in this resuming show how much disdain they have for their own basketball program. A willingness to have their team play Pitt on a 2-for-1 or home-home +1 at the Con.

I don’t care how down a program is, I can’t think of another BCS program that would be willing to do a 2-for-1 non-con basketball series. Not even DePaul (I think) would stand for that. Of course, the reason they would do that is because they want Pitt to somehow accept a similar deal for football. Something that won’t happen.

Finally, I have kept missing a chance to jam this into the blog. Next year, will actually have a protected arc underneath the basket.

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel on Monday approved the addition to a restricted-area arc under the basket for use in Division I men’s and women’s basketball.

The circle, which will be three feet from the center of the basket, will be used by officials to help with block/charge calls during competition.

The NCAA basketball rules committee had recommended the use of the circle in order to cut down on the number of collisions near the basket.

The NBA has had one for years. There has been a rule in place for a few years for officials to call a protected zone under the basket, but since the rules committee couldn’t decide on how big a zone, it was left to officials to make a judgment call. Something which effectively made the rule useless.

The rule will help, but Coach DIxon is also right that it doesn’t make it easier.

“It’s still going to be a difficult call,” Dixon said Thursday afternoon. “Even with the arc, there will be block/charge calls that are tough. It will remain the toughest call in college basketball and the most inconsistent. I hesitate to say it will clear things up.”

It will at least make it easier for fans to complain about missed calls on the replay.