At least they didn’t go out like Duquesne. Ooof.
There was a brief period in the second half. Pitt had an energy that had all but disappeared before halftime. They were attacking the basket — and forcing Virginia to foul. The defense was showing effort. And Pitt pulled within 2 points barely 7 minutes into the second half.
This from a group that in the first half looked listless as the deficit grew. Whether it was being tired from the night before or simply ready to give-up. The energy from Pitt looked so negative that the ESPN crew of Sean McDonough and Doris Burke openly talked of how everyone at Pitt was ready to move on from this season.
And then Virginia opened things up once more. From the Virginia perspective, it started with a hustle play that created a 50-50 ball bouncing their way.
Pitt had slashed Virginia’s 11-point halftime lead to 46-44 when Isaiah Wilkins tapped a Perrantes miss, back toward the perimeter, where the Cavaliers regained possession. A subsequent 50-50 ball sent the 6-foot-11, 247-pound Salt sprawling over the baseline, and before landing with a thud, he managed to knock the ball off Panthers All-ACC wing Michael Young.
Better yet for Virginia (22-9), Kyle Guy converted Salt’s save into a right-corner 3-pointer.
“I knew if it was off one of our guys,” Salt said, “so I just tried to chuck it behind me, and luckily there was a Pitt dude there, and he fumbled it out. I was pretty lucky, to be honest.”
“Big play,” Cavaliers coach Tony Bennett said. “He certainly didn’t look like he had a chance at it. … Those are momentum changes. We tell our guys, it’s about the heart at this level. Every possession matters, and that one mattered.”
From there, Perrantes, a four-year starter at point guard, seized command. He made back-to-back threes and a drive. He assisted on a Ty Jerome 3-pointer.
There was a little luck. Salt managed to send it backwards, so low that it hit Mike Young’s shins before he could react. And then it bounced out without hitting either Cavalier player that was out of bounds. Still, it was the way Virginia took advantage of the luck that made the difference.
I don’t know that there is much to say at this point. Pitt’s offense wasn’t able to consistently beat the Virginia defense, and the defense has never had much of an answer this year.
Just like the previous game, UVa went 11-22 on 3s (Virginia, on the season was about 39%). Pitt was better from outside then the previous game, but needed to shoot 3s like they did in the upset win in January.
As much as this team frustrated. Seemed downright unlikable at times. As much as we have a coach no one seemed to want. It still stings to see them go out. I still feel bad for the players on the team that did put the effort. The ones that did care.
With the loss, the seniors closed a chapter on their respective careers, a stretch of time that will be dissected, debated and occasionally scrutinized in the coming months and over the course of Stallings’ tenure at the school.
They’ve known for months their time at the school likely wouldn’t end how they would have preferred it to, or at least how they once envisioned it, but in a somber, understated locker room after the loss, it didn’t make it any easier to digest.
“It wasn’t so much about how people perceived us, but it was about how we wanted to go out,” Jeter said. “We didn’t want to go out how we are right now. We couldn’t avoid it, I guess.”
Nope.
Drew > Stallings for sure
ESPN
“I got millions of BUYOUT bucks. I’m back at my alma mater. Man, I’m on top of the world.”
“Big shoutout to all my supporters back in the Burgh!”
You can cheer for Stallings to advance from the couch, to the fridge, and eventually to the sh-tter.
He apparently buys in to the shadow of Dixon over the program BS from coaching style to recruiting failures used by so many Stallings apologists. Stallings has a history. I don’t understand why so many choose to ignore it.
After the failures next season it will still be Dixon’s fault because Stallings had to bring in so many new guys and it took them a season to sort things out. This truly isn’t going to end for 2 more years. Sigh….
Journalism has disappointingly evolved to be much more akin to propaganda than an independent perspective on things. Frankly, that is why blogs such as the Blather have taken hold. Take Chas. Arbitrarily select any his threads and you will find hard facts with editorializations sprinkled in. How refreshing compared to the local rags which do nothing but repeat what the Sports Information Department espouses. Then comes the editor, who most often has his or her own agenda (think PSU) plus a keen awareness of political correctness and by the time it reaches the reader the content is worthless.
The poor sap you are talking about actually thinks he is doing his job. Which, I guess he is if the criteria is dissemination of the requisite party line.
Some major media markets, such as Chicago and the Big Apple have a few traditionalists who would drum Stallings out of town. But Pittsburgh? If you didn’t folow college BB and relied on local reporters, you would think Stallings was a reincarnation of Ray Meyer.
It’s also why the most critical articles on Pitt are written by other writers at the papers rather than the beat writers.
Craig is just doing his job within the confines of what he’s allowed to. Once again, you should be blaming Pitt for the information we’re given. Craig is much more honest critiquing the program on Twitter.
Or is it being left to Herman to conduct the search for the Holy Grail…from Corvallis ?
>needs some more coffee<
Kittycart was one of the worst I’ve ever seen.
He shot 31% FT’s. Was even worse at FG’s, 30% and was a comical 19% from 3.
Upitt could even hoist up 10 and make 2.
Another reason, one has to shake one’s head why the BoT allowed this clown to be hired.
Even if it meant getting embarrassed by some no name school in the 1st Round.
L-Ville has played 32 games. Their highest point total of the season, was against Pitt. 106 points….next highest against some D2 school.
Pitt…..headed towards D2 status under Otis !
Makes the point of some my recent posts concerning Jamie Dixon’s flight from Pittsburgh… of course, minus the BUYOUT bucks.
********
It was that draw and the emotional pull of returning to his alma mater, after all, that prompted Dixon to leave Pitt after years of spurning offers from suitors, including previous overtures from Del Conte.
“It’s not about trying to keep him; it’s about the next step,” former Pitt athletic director Scott Barnes said of Dixon’s decision to leave. “When a guy’s heart and head isn’t in it, you can’t resuscitate that.”
********
Just to make it easy.
Simply credit Jamie’s Agent for masterminding the PERFECT Getaway.
IMO, they are the two who “could” make a change for the better. I wrote and mailed my letter early last week – both offices received the letter, but I’m not sure if they read it.
I felt better after writing the letter and even better when I dropped them off at the Post Office last Monday.
Better days are ahead for Pitt BB – Barnes is gone and now Stallings must follow…
What is the lost revenue?
And add in the ancillary revenue from Food and Beverage purchases, Pitt gear purchases, donations to the athletic dept, etc.
Otis must go, before the Pete is a total White Elephant.
It took a near $200 million dollar investment to make Pitt BBall relevant for a decade.
They won’t be doing that again….anytime soon.
IF Stallings is still the coach, Pitt might average 3,000 per home game. $5 million is a lot of money to lose over and over.
IF the Stallings buyout is even close to $5 million, the math makes sense to cut him now.
Cut your losses now, before they become epic.
Of course Pitt usually waits until things hit Rock Bottom…before they doing anything drastic.
“Pitt recorded six of the 14 lowest shooting percentages in a half in program history this season”
Oh uh, forget what I just said.
A: Because they play dead at home and get killed on the road.
Q: What did Kevin Stallings say after his team won the Championship?
A: Dammit mom, why did you f-ing wake me up? I was having a f-ing amazing dream!
A. Because her “coach” was Kevin Stallings.
I’m done – catch younwhen there is some new BB news in Pittsburgh.
Oh that’s right we are coached by Captain Turd.
“But this Pitt season was so bad that it almost was unbelievable. Its 4-14 record in the ACC was its worst league record in 40 years. It finished 16-17 overall, its first losing season since 1999-2000. I was at a basketball function a few days after Pitt lost at home by 55 to Louisville and heard prominent former Pitt players talking about how embarrassed they were to be associated with the program because of the players’ lack of fight. They could have included the coach; Kevin Stallings quit on his team that day by getting ejected with 14:27 left. I didn’t have the heart to ask the alums what they thought about Pitt losing to Duquesne in December. They would have wanted to crawl in a hole somewhere.”
That says a lot about the BB program right there. Time to rearrange the rocking chairs on the front porch and remove one of those currently seated on the porch. It’ll look better…
TCU beat #1 ranked Kansas an hour from their campus yesterday. TCU will be making their first postseason appearance in five years (CBI). TCU will be making their first NIT appearance since 2005. TCU won as many conference games this season as they had in the preceding 3 seasons.
Pitt has their first losing record since the 1999-2000 season. Pitt had their worst conference record since 1977. Pitt missing their first postseason since 1999-2000.
Dixon certainly looking great compared to Stallings.