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February 24, 2013

Any chance of that? Please?

Pitt has come to call Madison Square Garden its home away from home. It’s not something St. John’s probably likes to hear, but the Panthers have enjoyed a lot of success on the home court of the Red Storm over the years.

“We like to think that way,” Dixon said. “It’s St. John’s home court. It is different. I don’t know if you call it a home court, but it is different. We have a lot of people come to the games because of the tradition, the history and what we’ve done. We look forward to it.”

Pitt junior J.J. Moore is one of three players on the roster from the New York area. He is from Long Island. Dante Taylor and Tray Woodall also grew up in the metro area.

“It’s New York,” Moore said. “We all love playing there.”

I don’t suppose reality might point out that Pitt hasn’t “owned” the Garden in recent years?

No. 20 Pitt (20-7, 8-6) returns next month for its final appearance in the Big East Tournament.“We’re excited about playing in New York,” said Dixon, who has a 21-13 record at MSG, including victories against Duke, Louisville, Memphis and Georgetown. “We’ll have friends there. We’ll have family there. We’ll have fans.

“Obviously, St. John’s, it’s their home court, but it’s a place we have already played in (this season). It’s not normal that you play in a place you already played in earlier in the year.”

Pitt lost to Michigan and defeated Delaware in November in the NIT Season Tip-Off.

From the 2008-09 season to the present, however, Pitt is 6-7 in the Garden.

I’m not disputing the value of playing at MSG. I think it is great everytime Pitt plays there. It’s just that the whole thing of owning the Garden was built on the runs to the Big East Tournament Championship games in the aughts and the thrilling win over Duke.  In the past few years, though, there really isn’t much of a claim on that “ownership.”

Especially when the opponent is St. John’s and I may never forget the home-cooking they got in 2011.

I guess, I’d just rather focus on how Pitt needs to break a losing streak and just has to avoid more losses.

“Every game is important,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. “The first 27 were important and the next four are important, too. … We have to focus on the next one. No matter how many you win, no game becomes less important.”

That would mean reversing a recent trend. The Panthers have dropped consecutive games for the first time since losing the first two games of the conference schedule to Cincinnati and Rutgers. They lost at Marquette by 10 and by 9 at home to Notre Dame after having a 16-point lead in the first half.

St. John’s halted a two-game losing streak Wednesday with a 69-54 home victory against last-place South Florida. Whereas Pitt played the most difficult portion of its schedule in recent weeks, St. John’s still has games at Providence and Marquette and a home game against Marquette.

“Pittsburgh presents a great challenge,” Lavin said. “They’re a very physical basketball team. … Our young team understands we’ll have to play our best basketball to win.”

Pitt hasn’t been very physical in its two-game slide. Notre Dame and Marquette beat up the Panthers on the boards, winning the rebounding margin by 15 and 9. The Irish and Golden Eagles also outhustled the Panthers for loose balls. The Panthers also must defend better. St. John’s sophomore D’Angelo Harrison, the third-leading scorer in the Big East, is averaging 18.3 points per game.

Pitt has been inconsistent this season. Which, really, makes them like 90% of the teams in 1-A.  That’s something we aren’t used to seeing. Pitt has been very good and very consistent for the last decade. Even last year’s disappointing season, there was a consistency to the losing. This year there are wild fluctuations. Variances. It isn’t what we’ve seen for quite some time.

In a way, it is more disconcerting than the team just not being very good. Because we don’t know what to expect.

We’ll find out what kind of Pitt team and effort shows up today at Noon on Big East Network syndication. Today’s stations are Root, MSG, MASN, Brighthouse and Altitude.





I was there and met some great Pitt fans.

My take: Our 10 plumb tuckered out their 7. See SJU 2nd half fg%, same shot selection as 1st half.

Comment by steve1 02.24.13 @ 4:55 pm

Very interesting stat, Pitt win, usually less than 100 posts, Pitt loss way over 100 posts. Go figure!?

Comment by Dr. Tom 02.24.13 @ 5:02 pm

Question: What has happened to Trey Zeigler?

Comment by isnore 02.24.13 @ 5:12 pm

What a difference a hot shooter makes. Sure cleaned up a lot of inadequacies today.

Sleepy can only play the four when he and Adams are not in foul trouble. Zanna’s malaise seems to be getting worse and Moore refuses to drive to the hoop, which should be his strongest asset.

Patterson had another off day, hope he gets over it by tournament time. Johnson has his moments, going to be a strong player for the next 2 or 3 years.

Adams looked real good today, nice bounceback after the last two games.

Robinson is steady, keeping his pass to turnover ratio by not taking many risks. Going to need to shoot more and better next year.

Good all around d by us, bad shooting by them. Great formula for victory.

Not going to get many calls by Big East officials, might as well get used to it for next year.

Comment by gc 02.24.13 @ 5:13 pm

Dr. Tom — Some Pitt fans are not happy unless they have something to complain about. We must remember that these guys are still young men and are still learning their game.

Jamie deserves credit for turning this year’s team around. Regardless of seeding Pitt will go to the Big Dance.

H2P

Comment by MariettaMike 02.24.13 @ 5:15 pm

Dr. Tom, not much to bitch about. Only kool-aid drinkers today.

Comment by gc 02.24.13 @ 5:17 pm

I like Kool-Aid

Comment by Dr. Tom 02.24.13 @ 5:29 pm

Question either Dixon is brain dead or he would play Adams 30+ minutes a game. When he sits on the bench Pitt is the same team from last year. Adams and only Adams is the reason Pitt defense is effective.
The only rational thing I can consier is that Adams because of his limited playing time at this level may not have developed the stamina yet.
I prefer to believe this rather than the making sure the 10 man rotation is sustained a ridiculous concept id Adams can go 30 plus.

Comment by pittisit 02.24.13 @ 5:44 pm

if it’s unsweetened

Comment by wbb 02.24.13 @ 5:45 pm

Big men usually play less minutes; doesn’t seem to have the stamina as the little guys

Comment by wbb 02.24.13 @ 5:47 pm

This was very very badly needed win! I would still like to see our big guys going straight up and dunking the ball when they get the opportunity. Steven Adams is still a bit hesitant. That moment of hesitation gives the defenders time to recover. By going up immediately, he gets more fouls called on the defender, more dunks, and hopefully more opportunities at the line. Overall it wa a good win on the road. It was a game that the Panthers needed to win and they did.

Comment by Justinian 02.24.13 @ 5:50 pm

I don’t believe Adams and especially Taylor or Zanna are quick jumpers. The need to flex their knees beofre going up. Also, all three can’t quit bringing the ball down where the smaller guys and reach in and swat it.

Lastly, all 3 need to learn how to use their left hand to shoot expecially when they are the left side of the hoop … probably too late for taylor

Comment by wbb 02.24.13 @ 6:03 pm

Actually Steve learned that often when you get the ball at the waist it is better to head fake and then take the ball up thereby avoiding the block. He did that twice today. Both Zanna and Taylor do not do that and that is why that are often blocked putting the ball back up.
Unlesss you get an offensive rebound at its height or if you drive the lane it is better to give a head fake get the defender up in the air then go up uncontested. Adams did it perfectly today. In the past he would take it straight up and get stripped. Also make sure when you go back up the ball is in front of you not behind your head to be strepped from behind.
Glad to see Adams take the 20 ft jumper the guy can shot. Just missed on the 25 ft. jumper.
If Mike Young is as tough down low, he has the body already, as advertised next year I’d consider playing him at 5 on offense and Adams on 4.

Comment by pittisit 02.24.13 @ 6:06 pm

I don’t question how Jamie is managing Adams development. The biggest issue is staying out of foul trouble. Less minutes = less fatigue.

I agree that all the big men including Moore need to go more aggressively to the hoop. Dunk as early and often as possible.

Comment by gc 02.24.13 @ 6:11 pm

I agree wbb and considering Adams lack of competive basketball this is probably more pronounced> I doubt if he ever has had any conditiong trainig. Everything he is doing now is simply natural atheletic skill.
Considering this after a off-season conditioning program hopefully an opportunity to go to a camp like the one Olajawon runs for big menMosses Malone tutored Olajuwan his red-shirt freshman year) Adams would be scary next year.
He would not have too worry whose coming out or not.

Comment by pittisit 02.24.13 @ 6:14 pm

Adams is also a much better leaper than I thought. As he gets more comfortable his jumping, fluidity, timing and aggressiveness are all improving.

As they say the game is slowing down for him.

Comment by gc 02.24.13 @ 6:15 pm

A bit off topic but I had to laugh during the game today when my 4 year old son kept wanting to watch the Big East commercials about kids playing basketball and dreaming of playing for the BE championship in NYC. Not sure that will really be the case in another year or so.

Also, who were the announcers today? Did anyone hear them talking about Costco and BJs?

Comment by CalvinHobbes 02.24.13 @ 6:42 pm

Regaeding our big guys getting the ball stripped underneath we also have to remember we play in the big-east were the elbow down is part of the ball. That rule also goes for reaching around and “stripping” the dribbler.
But for God sake when will Woodall learn he cannot dribble trough 2 defenders. Of course he was hoping for the fouls to at he end dribbling around rather than passing the ball to avoid turnovers. With the game he had I will not be too critical except that it is a component of his game I wish he unlearn.

Comment by pittisit 02.24.13 @ 7:00 pm

A conversation at the game: Both Zanna and Adams don’t have that playground aggressiveness because they entered the playground…the BE…late.

They’re behind others but give ’em time.

Comment by steve1 02.24.13 @ 7:25 pm

Very happy with the win, but some of the same issues that have troubled this team were apparent again today. Too tentative inside as has been discussed. Still standing around too much on offense, still not boxing out, still missing too many FTs. Fortunately, Woodall and poor St. John’s shot selection helped Pitt overcome.

Comment by Iron Duke 02.24.13 @ 7:30 pm

this pitt team is doing nothing in the tourney unless and until our bigs start finishing around the rim. pitt would score an additional 10-12 pts a game if zanna, adams and sleepy would simply make a layup/dunk the ball when they get it 2 ft from the hoop.

Comment by scott 02.24.13 @ 7:38 pm

Nice bounce back after Monday’s debacle. I still can’t believe what I saw on Monday. That was awful.

Pitt has quietly had a very nice season. One thing that I will never fully comprehend is Jamie Dixon playing Taylor and Moore as his frontcourt. I can see having Taylor and Moore at the 5 & 4, but not at the same time. It’s a defensive nightmare. He is obviously infinitely smarter than I am regarding basketball, therefore I will defer to him. However, I must say it is mind boggling to this fan.

Looks like Pitt will end up as a 5 seed in the Big East Tourney and about the same in the NCAA. The team has the talent to play with anyone. We will see what the team is made of in the next few weeks.

Comment by omar 02.24.13 @ 7:41 pm

Am I the only one hopeful for a not-so-great seed? Not anywhere near #16 but somewhere in the middle of the pack where we can get a favorable matchup and even be the underdog? At least we’ll be over the ‘underperforming’ conversation always following around our Panthers…

Comment by MikePITT 02.24.13 @ 7:56 pm

good win…never know what pitt team we’ll see this year….so don’t be surprised if they lose one of the remaining games…as for the tourny..i’d be surprised if we win one game..who’s gonna score???….and Dixon is kinda shortening the bench….finally!!

Comment by Keith 02.24.13 @ 8:02 pm

Scott, my thoughts exactly. The FTs aside, this team leaves too many easy points on the floor. Come tourney time, those missed layups — which should be dunks mostly — will mean an L in the 1st or 2nd round. Adams never attacks the hoop, ditto Zanna and Moore. He’ll, Moore starts double clutching before he’s been touched. A win , but the missed layups will kill us against better teams. It does not seem fixable this year, and I am almost certain it will mean an early exit in the big dance against a team we should beat.

Comment by Carmen 02.24.13 @ 8:15 pm

random observations:
One turnover from entire Pitt bench was huge today. Zanna’s confidence is totally shot and he has been terrible for 6 weeks now; he is killing Pitt right now. Dixon has to start exploring other options/lineup combinations. James Robinson needs to start penetrating to the middle of the paint more; when he does good things happen. Lastly, Adams wasn’t sporting a wrap on his hand today so that’s a great sign. Plus, his foul trouble seems to be a thing of the past. Time for Dixon to put as much on this young man’s shoulders as he can handle. Specifically more minutes and more quality touches.

Comment by WorkinOnMyPittness 02.24.13 @ 8:20 pm

WorkinOnMyPittness, Robinson begged Adams for the wrap.

Adams being a good mate, consented.

Comment by steve1 02.24.13 @ 8:26 pm

@MikePITT – I said the same thing a few weeks ago. 5-7 seed, no expecations, favorable matchups in a favorable location may lead to favorable results.

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.24.13 @ 8:55 pm

A lot are still putting way too much emphasis on the Marquette and ND games. Average margin of victory in Big East games is 14.6. That’s pretty ridiculous. Yes they struggled in a couple games but for the most part they are just giving it to other teams.

Comment by Wardapalooza 02.24.13 @ 9:35 pm

Plus no one in the country has a better win than Pitt’s at Georgetown.

Comment by Wardapalooza 02.24.13 @ 9:40 pm

Yes, and winning the last few games would be nice springboard going into Pitt’s last Big East Tounament. Hail to Pitt!

Comment by Justinian 02.24.13 @ 10:10 pm

There was nobody there today. We were able to sit in the front row behind the basket. So quiet.

Comment by Chris 02.24.13 @ 10:14 pm

Internet was down all day, just got it back.

Great win for PITT. Did anyone expect a 16 point victory. lol I know I didn’t.

Chas is right, you have no idea how this team is going to play from game to game.

Reading over the comments during the game is kind of funny. As they suggest most of us have little or zero confidence in this team. Or only the skeptical ones post.

I didn’t see Kiwi Steve mentioned at all in the comments till after the game was over. Again he’s not being used properly. Why not play him at the 4 on offense and back to the 5 on defense.
Put Sleepy in at the 5 on offense where he’s played for 4 years and is somewhat comfortable and it frees Adams to play more face up on the 15feet area outside the paint.

Playing Sleepy at the 5 and Kiwi Steve at the 4 would cause incredible matchup problems for the other team. And you could more easily isolate Adams against his defender.

I know it won’t happen but it would awful fun if it did.

Panthers on the Prowl !

Hail to Pitt !
Veritas et Virtus

Comment by EMel 02.24.13 @ 11:14 pm

And a big shoutout to Woodie for having one of his biggest games as a Panther in his hometown, in his Senior year and at MSG.

Couldn’t have come at a better time, since someone, needs to take the most shots, the big shots for this team. And it really should be a Senior and we’ve seen Woodie go off before with big games.

Reminded me of the two wins last year after Woodie came back from his injury when both he and Ashton lit it up in back to back games.

We really do need a 20 point scorer on this team, the “Go To” guy.

Coach finally took the leash off and let someone get comfortable out there and just play.
Since Woodie handled the ball most of the game, I don’t understand why JR was out there for 33 minutes..for a measly 2 points and 4 assists.

Although I’m glad he got the message on Wright & Zanna and limited their minutes to 5 minutes & 15 minutes When you’re not getting much production from the 1 and the 5, you can’t afford to have Zanna out there or Wright as they don’t add much if anything somebody else couldn’t and even less offense.

Coach did a good job tinkering with the minutes this game, as mentioned reducing Zanna to 15 and Wright to 5. Now tinker some more and reduce JR’s and since the 4 is a problem, put Adams over there and Sleepy at the 5. Adams agility and athleticism is being lost at the 5. After all Dirk Nowitzski is 7 feet tall as well, but he plays the 4…….not the 5.

And Dirk would not be Dirk playing the 5 now…..would he.

Comment by EMel 02.24.13 @ 11:30 pm

Some others that are 6-10, 6-11 or 7-0 who don’t play Center. With of course the future NBA Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitszi mentioned above.

They are Power Forwards:

Tim Duncan 6-11, tallest on the Spurs doesn’t play Center.

Amare Stoudemire 6-10 doesn’t play Center. His incredible athleticism would be lost at center.

Lamar Odom at 6-10, never played Center for the Lakers, nor did he play Center at little Rhode Island U.

Charlie Villanueva at 6-11 never played Center in the NBA or at UConn.

Tyler Hansbrough at 6-10 never played Center in the NBA or at UNC.

Hakim Warrick at 6-10 never played Center in the NBA. Played more outside at Syracuse, not in the Paint.

Nene at 6-11 never played Center for the Nuggets nor for his current team, the Wizards.

Kevin Durant at 6-10 never played Center, a PF in college and a SF in the NBA.

Andrea Bargnani at 7-0 never played Center for the Raptors of the NBA, he’s a PF.

Blake Griffin at 6-10 never played Center at Oklahoma nor in the NBA

LaMarcus Aldridge at 6-11 is a PF in the NBA.

I can name about 20 others at 6-10, 6-11 or 7-0.

The point is, just because you’re the tallest player on the team, doesn’t mean you HAVE to play Center. Nor do I think Kiwi Steve will play Center in the NBA.

Putting any of the above names at the 5 would extremely limit their games and they would have never become the players they are, if they were forced to play Center.

Kiwi Steve’s game is more sorted to PF, cause he can dribble, he can move for a 7 footer as we saw on the 3/4 length of the floor drive to the basket and the resulting finger roll like a guard, which was the ONLY redeeming aspect of the ND game and from what I’ve heard he has incredible range on his shot, maybe like Nowitzki.

None of the attributes that makes him so special will be realized if he’s bottled up inside and forced to be something he’s not.

Comment by EMel 02.25.13 @ 12:47 am

Emel, very strong argument, you sold me. Gilbert might have stayed if Adams was at the 4. To make it happen next year Jamie needs a Juco center.

Like you said not gonna happen, but probably should.

Looking at the box score this morning, Patterson didn’t play as poorly as I thought except for free throws 3-7. Agree about Robinson, 4 assists and 2 points in 31 minutes is not enough.

Moving Adams to the 4 solves the biggest problem, the lack of production from Zanna and Moore. A combined 9 points and 5 rebounds in 38 minutes.
Maybe Zeigler should play the 4 ala Nasir, he is a good rebounder and is not afraid to drive the lane ( just joking)

The real problem with Adams and Taylor on the floor at the same time is foul trouble. Jamie’s management of the current lineup has been good at preventing anyone from fouling out.

They need to get Zanna and Moore to a sports psychologist real quick, maybe a hypnotist to convince them they are power forwards. We sure need one.

Comment by gc 02.25.13 @ 8:23 am

Emel, very strong argument, you sold me. Gilbert might have stayed if Adams was at the 4. To make it happen next year Jamie needs a Juco center.

Like you said not gonna happen, but probably should.

Looking at the box score this morning, Patterson didn’t play as poorly as I thought except for free throws 3-7. Agree about Robinson, 4 assists and 2 points in 31 minutes is not enough.

Moving Adams to the 4 solves the biggest problem, the lack of production from Zanna and Moore. A combined 9 points and 5 rebounds in 38 minutes.
Maybe Zeigler should play the 4 ala Nasir, he is a good rebounder and is not afraid to drive the lane ( just joking)

The real problem with Adams and Taylor on the floor at the same time is foul trouble. Jamie’s management of the current lineup has been good at preventing anyone from fouling out.

They need to get Zanna and Moore to a sports psychologist real quick, maybe a hypnotist to convince them they are power forwards. We sure need one.

Comment by gc 02.25.13 @ 8:23 am

Whoops

Comment by gc 02.25.13 @ 8:24 am

Woodall can really play great at times.He makes a huge difference.

Comment by spiritofsection22 02.25.13 @ 9:13 am

@gc – no worries. Some things are worth repeating.

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 9:34 am

EMel, almost all of those guys that you listed are more athletic than Adams. And Adams plays bigger than all of those guys. Adams would get torched on the defensive end by 4s like Blake Griffin. That’s not saying he’s unathletic, cause he is atheltic for a big guy. Just because you have some handle doesn’t make you a PF. Shaq when he was young would have enough handle to dribble full court during games. I think Adams can become someone like Marc Gasol.

You can see that Jamie is starting to really think about playing Taylor and Adams for some stretches during games, cause this was the second straight game he had them both out there. Fouls are always going to limit that lineup.

JJ needs to start hitting his jumpers against those 4s guarding him. Right now no one respects his shot. That’s what’s killing his game.

Zanna, I don’t like his game at all right now. He seems to be playing selfish. And he consistently drives really weak and hopes to get bailed out by calls. Zanna will probably benefit the most from the switch to the ACC.

Comment by Wardapalooza 02.25.13 @ 9:36 am

As I recall, Emel characterized Gilbert’s trnsfer as no big deal when it happened back in December, stating how limited his skills were. This was something I wondered about considering the lack of frontcourt depth especially for next year.

The other issue is that since the BE schedule began, Woodall has been the most consistent player we had and sometimes is guilty of not shooting enough. You have to really give him credit because he came here without any reputation for being a scorer, and is now our most reliable shooter … not only his 3 pointers but that pull-up 15 footer he has developed just recently. His assist-to-turnover ration continues to be exemplary

Comment by wbb 02.25.13 @ 9:49 am

correction — his assist-to-turnover RATIO continues to be exemplary

Comment by wbb 02.25.13 @ 9:51 am

WBB – we also characterized John Johnson’s transfer as “no big deal”. We sure could have used some of his 3 point shooting, driving and dishing etc. at points this season.

But as they say, “it is what it is”!

Comment by Dan 72 02.25.13 @ 9:53 am

And….can we all stop saying that Zanna is in a slump! He is simply playing to his ability level.
As someone posted weeks ago. He has “no” game.

Comment by Dan 72 02.25.13 @ 9:57 am

As far as fall off on rebounding I still see that as the inabilty of the guards and small forwars from boxing out their men and being more aggressive coming to the backboard when on defense.
They may have gotten the misconception that they could be a running team as they were against the smaller less physical non-conference teams.
Now Adams is having to fight 2 oppents for every rebound and when he is not in Pitt is reduced to the small overwhelmed inside team they were last year.
In either case Pitt does not have the atheletes to run with the top rated teams (our guards are not that caliber). They need to win by keeping Adams in the game as long as possible (I think we are making excuses for Dixon’s 10 man rotation (Taylor ought to be getting his minutes from Zanna), Adams has not been in foul trouble in the last 10 games.
Play tough defense which demands Adams in the middle. Johson and wright from now on should see limited minutes. Increase Zeigler’s minutes he is playing like he is waiting to get yanked (problem of 10 man rotation-its is player speak that they players are in agreement and are happy with their minutes/I hope they aren’t).
Zanna and Taylor rotate at 4 and as few minutes as necessary at the 5.

Comment by pittisit 02.25.13 @ 10:01 am

well at least we are well stocked in the backcourt for the future with Robinson, Newkirk, Jones and Johnson. That is certainly not the case in the frontcourt at the 4 and 5

Comment by wbb 02.25.13 @ 10:03 am

Zanna was supposed to have the flu and did look pretty bad.His most recent good game was Cincinatti where he played great on a bad ankle.Although he is very prone to being invisible on the court,at times he plays well.To say he has no game however isn’t true.He is adequate defensively ,rebounds better than average and has improved at the foul line this year.He does struggle to get involved offensively and obviously lacks confidence there.This is our teams greatest weakness.I think he is playing below his ability level and might yet step up.

Comment by spiritofsection22 02.25.13 @ 10:13 am

@PO’D PANTHER. On the FSU/Villanova post, you said Pitt by 6 was a lock, a lock for St. John’s or anyone else playing Pitt.

Hope you didn’t put your house on it!!!

Comment by Dan 02.25.13 @ 10:16 am

I am most dumbfounded by JJ Moore. Even though playing out of position, he should be able to drive around the bigger slower players to the hoop. I know his ball handling is limited, but he is the teams best leaper. No back doors no alley oops. Yesterday he was wide open and Robinson just ignores him.

He looked like he would break through at the end of last year and now, he just makes the occasional 3. He should be playing above the rim.

Comment by gc 02.25.13 @ 10:20 am

Below is a link to the NY Post on the Pitt-St. Johns, for a New York perspective on the gaame.

game.link to nypost.com

Comment by Justinian 02.25.13 @ 10:30 am

The question now is can ANYBODY play the 4 on this team?? Playing Taylor at the 4 is easily exposed as a liability on defense as it was yesterday. People just drive around him. It could possibly work if they go to some sort of zone defense with Taylor and Adams for limited periods.
For all the positives Taylor gives on the offensive end, he gives back just as much when he goes on defense.

It is sure a head scratcher as to where the points are going to come from when we have certain combinations on the court.

Patterson came up big in the closing minutes with timely rebounds and that along with guards rebounding could make the rest of the season enjoyable to watch.

Comment by Virgil 02.25.13 @ 10:33 am

For this team to do any post-season damage, it will certainly require Woodall to become the hub of the offense. Despite his penchant for just maddening decisions/mistakes (why the hell did he not loft an oop for Moore on that 3 v 1 break??!!), this team needs somebody to step up and be the leader, both verbally and scoring-wise, and he is that person. Patterson could be, but he has shown that he just isn’t prepared to do that game in and game out.

And I want to see some MFing dunks! Dixon should give them a dunk mandate: 7 dunks in the next game, of which Adams and Moore should have at least 2. Perhaps he is challenging them in this way. If so, it’s not working, and he needs to try something else. Make them watch 1 hour a day of Blake Griffin highlights or something, with “send it in Jerome!” spliced in every 10 minutes.

Comment by Carmen 02.25.13 @ 11:43 am

Slap me with some Phi Slamma Jamma.

Comment by TX Panther 02.25.13 @ 12:07 pm

From ESPN.com’s power rankings where we are currently 22:

“The Panthers regrouped after disappointing losses to Marquette and Notre Dame, beating St. John’s by not just playing good defense but also actually scoring some points. Tray Woodall is the obvious secret to the Panthers’ success.”

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 12:26 pm

#14 on Basketball Power Index

Comment by TX Panther 02.25.13 @ 12:50 pm

AP #23
Coaches ARV (#26)
RPI #39

Pitt really cannot help its position over the next 3 games. They are all games that they should win.
But any hiccup, and their hopes of a good seed (without long travel) in the NCAA Tourney are lost.
With some help, Pitt can still secure a double-bye @ MSG.

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 1:13 pm

@xfmrman – I’m not sure I want Pitt to have a double bye. Too much time off isn’t good for this team and, in the past, it didn’t help us.

As for seed, I’m not sure I want a high seed. This team plays to the level of its competition. I’d rather them enter the tournament without high expectations and overachieve. I’m much more interested in where they play (ie. not out west) than how high they are seeded.

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 1:26 pm

CBSsports.com has Pitt at 22 in its Top 25 (and 1) saying:

“The Panthers haven’t lost to a team not in the Top 25 (and one) since they lost at Rutgers on Jan. 5.”

Fair point for why we should still be ranked. Not sure what the coaches are looking at and not sure I care.

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 1:29 pm

When I said this team plays to the level of its competition, I was, of course, not including the Notre Dame game.

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 1:30 pm

Pitt Dad:
I agree that they seem to play better with 3-4 days off, not 7.
I believe that Pitt is going to be punished for the weak OOC schedule (and the Rutgers loss) and be sent West. The only way to avoid this will be to win out and have a great showing in MSG.

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 1:32 pm

Pitt Dad:
ND is not that good. The team was out-of-sync all nite. It was a struggle to stay until the end.
Pitt’s performance in that game is why the dropped out of the Coaches Poll.

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 1:41 pm

why *they dropped

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 1:42 pm

@xfmrman – agree that ND is not that good but, because we were so out of sync (part of which I blame on the players, most of which I blame on the refs reaction to Brey’s outburst for which he should have been tossed), we actually played well BELOW ND’s level.

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 1:48 pm

RE: Home losses Cin, MU, ND.

The “home court advantage” was lost in these games.
Although when Patterson hit the shot to send the MU game into OT, and the crowd erupted, we were too quiet the other 43 minutes of the game.
After Brey got the technical, the whole mood in the Pete changed and we were too quiet while watching our team fall apart.
During the 2nd half run, and eventual victory by Cin, the mood was similar to that of the ND game.
We in the arena need to make noise and support the team when they are down. And noise throughout the game also disrupts the opposition.
The Oakland game should be the template. The team fought back, forced OT and won, with the support of a loud Pete.

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 2:02 pm

Do athletic department folks read these blogs?

Yes, according to one I talked to at the game.

Comment by steve1 02.25.13 @ 2:03 pm

@steve1 – do they just read or do they post too?

Comment by Pitt Dad 02.25.13 @ 2:14 pm

Read, not post, Pitt Dad.

Comment by steve1 02.25.13 @ 4:11 pm

I didn’t notice the brace on Adams’ hand on Sunday.He seemed more comfortable going to the short jumper.I hope it will lead to some improved freethrows as well.I think he needs to quit looking to be Larry Byrd with his assists and just go to the well when he gets the ball.He passes up way too many opportunities.Zanna suffers from that same disease.

Comment by spiritofsection22 02.25.13 @ 4:17 pm

Woodall really makes a diference when he plays well but if we are to make any real noise in the Big East or NCAA tourneys our big guys up front have to play better.It is getting late but I still hold hope we will see some improvement there.Without improvement I don’t see us winning more than 1 game at either gathering.

Comment by spiritofsection22 02.25.13 @ 4:24 pm

Steve…does that mean it might be Miller time? LOL

Comment by Jackagain 02.25.13 @ 5:35 pm

For those who dislike the 10 man rotation, you may want to get used to it. Hard to imagine we won’t see the same next year. We lose Woodall, and I don’t see anyone in the current mix capable of playing the point, so that means the freshman Newkirk will probably fill the role next year. And I just can’t see Jamie relying on a Moore as the first sub for Adams/Zanna, so whether the other freshman (Young?) fills the role or he lands a JUCO player it still looks like a 10 man rotation.

Comment by marcus of schaumburg 02.25.13 @ 6:39 pm

On Monday night, these games helped Pitt: (RPI)

Marquette over Syracuse.
Bethune-Cookman over Savannah St.
Howard over MDES.

These games hurt Pitt:

Hampton over Del St.
And in a game that was decided by the refs, SH over Villanova.

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 11:24 pm

After watching the Syracuse/MU and SH/Vil games tonite, I must say that BE refs suck.

Comment by xfmrman 02.25.13 @ 11:27 pm

Dan – fortunately, I am 1000 miles from my former bookie. So no, the house is still in my name. But I would have another one, perhaps, if I had laid down the mortgage against Pitt in its 2 previous 6 point favorite games, not to mention the 10 points Pitt gave to Notre Dame.

Question – does Buzz Williams place a picture of Curly Howard next to his mirror in the morning? He must have an old glossy of Curly, and say to himself, every day, “Man, that is one good looking dude.”

But seriously, I think it is pathetic that the Duquesne University of Milwaukee can recruit better, stronger and bigger athletes than the soon to be pride of the ACC, the Pittsburgh Panthers. So much so that even a Buzz Williams can coach the team to the top of the conference. And don’t give me the academics/graduation crap. I cringe when most of our “student athletes” do an interview. I am sure Marquette is no worse.

Pitt recruits a power forward that never wanted to be here, a 7 footer that will be gone after this year, a potential replacement for him that is then run off the team, and a host of unathletic 6-4 small forwards that cannot rebound or consistently make jump shots. I am sure that Gilbert was run off the team so we could make room for another 6-4 small forward.

And a second question – ESPN, noted as the network that was at least an accessory to the rise of Dick Vitale, now has to try to top that by having Dan Dakich, Bill Walton, and the inimitable and apparently indestructible Brent Muffburger in the broadcast booth? Myron Cope, where are you?

Comment by PO'd Panther 02.26.13 @ 9:05 pm

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