A local Fox station in Memphis reported that Memphis and the Big East were hot and heavy in negotiations to have the Tigers join.

Ever since the Memphis Tigers got left behind in the Great Bum Rush to leave Conference USA– also known as the Big East expansion in 2003– Tiger fans have had one singular goal. To follow their old rivals from Louisville, and Cincinnati to the greener pastures of the Big East.

And here’s where it gets interesting.

Sources have confirmed to FOX13 Sports that University of Memphis officials have been in serious talks with the Big East about joining the conference.

Of course the Big East is denying this story.

…Big East spokesman John Paquette to track down these rumors that Memphis might join the Big East and he categorically denied them.

“No truth,” Paquette said by phone from Rhode Island. “I saw the clip. It’s a TV report with no named sources. No one from the University of Memphis. No on-the-record sources. We’ve been down this road. We are not talking about expansion with any institution.”

Repeat after me, there won’t be any expansion until there is a split of the conference between the football schools and the basketball only schools.

I think some cautious skepticism about the football team is still warranted. It’s hard with so many pieces starting to look like they are coming into place.

The defense looks strong overall — even if there are some areas with thin depth. The defensive line appears to finally be a point of strength. The linebackers have a hard-nosed, aggressive guy in the middle with more depth than at any point in years. Safety, while not deep, has talent.

On offense there is a stud running back. The receiving corps while not flashy is deep and talented. The QB situation looks a bit better. Even the offensive line has some hope with players coming back from injury, a center that looks like a great find from JUCO ranks and a blue-chip freshman who should be able to grab a starting job immediately.

The coaching staff was overhauled, and seems to be on the same page.

Add in the strong finish from last year that raises the optimism. As further proof of how close Pitt might be, I have seen many cite that Pitt lost 4 of its games by 7 or fewer points. That just a couple bounces, a couple less injuries (or better officiating *cough* Rutgers *cough*) and Pitt would have been at least 6-6 or even, possibly 8-4. Suggesting how close Pitt might be.

On the flip side, though, Pitt also won 3 games by 7 or fewer points. Meaning that a 3-4 record in tight games suggests Pitt was very close to where they should have been, record-wise.

I was thinking about that as I kept coming back to this look at the Big East and team’s schedules.

Two things struck me right away. First, how unsure people are about the Big East after the assumption that WVU will be good and Syracuse will suck. Second, upon reflection I can’t disagree.

The eyeballing of schedules where you pick out almost certain losses or wins for the Big East teams yields a lot more toss-ups than usual. In large part because the teams in the Big East have improved and there is more parity.

UConn had a great season last year, and they didn’t lose much. USF and Rutgers have shown stability and are establishing themselves as consistent top-25 or right around there teams. Cinci is on their way there with Kelly as coach and especially if Mauk gets that 6th year at QB. Louisville is just a big question mark — they could implode with all the JUCOs brought in or could gel like a K-State team.

Then there’s Pitt.

This might be the strongest Panther team yet under Dave Wannstedt, but the schedule could make it a challenging year. There’s a chance for a big start with a home win over Iowa in mid-September, but the Big East slate starts out with two road games against Syracuse and South Florida. Going to Navy and Notre Dame will make it four road dates in a five-game span, and then there’s the finishing kick. After getting a mid-November week off, the Panthers have to play at Cincinnati, West Virginia, and at Connecticut. That could be just tough enough to ruin Big East title hopes.

They don’t give Pitt any “Likely losses” but after the two MAC warm-ups there are also no other “near certain wins” either. And I can’t argue too hard against that. Even the Syracuse game being in Syracuse does make that closer to a toss-up than a lock right now.

I regularly try to praise the NBE Basketball Report for a good reason. It is one of my daily reads and has gone beyond being the best link round-up on Big East Basketball. The site also features regular and original recruiting news of Big East targets provided from the fine writers at Pittsburgh Sports Report, CAA Insider, Northstar Basketball and others. So if you want to follow the Pitt and other Big East recruiting make sure you read it daily.

Here’s a sampling of some key stuff from the past few days.

I never got around to linking to a Q&A done with Dante Taylor from Pittsburgh Jam Fest.

Chris Dokish provides a look at Pitt recruiting 2008 through 2010.

There is also a look at 2009 big man target, Aaric Murray.

A couple other big man targets include Zeke Marshall and Mouphtaou Tarou. Brian Crownover of CAA Insider has a look at how they, Dan Jennings and other BE targets did in the King James AAU Tournament.

One of the AAU teams, DC Blue Devils provided a specific report on how some of their players did. Not to mention that another member Talib Zanna — a 6-9 BF/C — is getting interest from Pitt.

Meanwhile, looking at the 2008 NBA Draft, Chad Ford lists players who are in, who aren’t really in and who should have. Sam Young makes his list of players who should have declared this year.

Young is 23 years old and coming off a breakout season. He should’ve struck while the iron was hot.

Louisvlle’s Earl Clark also falls in that category.

The Big East as Andy Katz at ESPN.com writes will be an especially brutal conference.

The Big East had only three players declare early — West Virginia junior Joe Alexander, Marquette junior Jerel McNeal and Syracuse freshman Donte Greene.

So far none have signed with an agent, meaning they all retain their amateur eligibility. Alexander and Greene are projected to go in the first round, with the chance that they could still slide to the second round. That means they may ride it out until the June 16 deadline to withdraw from the draft. McNeal is likely going to return to Marquette.

Connecticut’s Hasheem Thabeet stayed in school, a decision that Villanova coach Jay Wright said amazed him. So, too, did Louisville’s Earl Clark. Pitt’s Sam Young decided against leaving. Marquette’s Dominic James and Syracuse’s Jonny Flynn opted to remain as well. Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody, the Big East’s Player of the Year, didn’t give leaving much of a thought.

“We could have easily lost two or three more guys,” Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. “We’re not losing guys. It’s going to be a superstrong league again.”

Of the 15 underclassmen on the first two All-Big East teams last season, 12 are coming back. Seniors accounted for only four of the conference’s top 25 scorers and three of its top 20 rebounders. And there were no seniors among the top nine leaders in assists.

The projected favorites of the league — Connecticut, Louisville, Notre Dame and Pitt — are all potential Final Four teams.

This is why Marquette has to have extra anxiety with the loss of Crean and hiring an assistant. The way the conference is stacked right now, it is really easy to get buried in the conference. Really easy.

Given the depth and number of returning players and teams nearly intact –UConn, ND, Marquette, Villanova and Pitt all only lose a couple players who seem replaceable –  it is going to be real easy to have a good season and finish 5th or 6th.

Just look at this Rivals.com top-25 projection. Pitt is 2nd. UConn 1st, ND 4th and Louisville 8th. 4 of their top 8 from the BE. Along with G-town Marquette and Villanova in the top-20. WVU is left out for now (probably pending Joe Alexander’s decision).
As you look at that depth and the fact that this season the 3-point line moves to 20-9 — a foot further out — and you do at least get why Coach Jamie Dixon decided he needed to bring in a new JUCO for the shooting guard position rather than risk relying on a freshman to be ready.

While the women’s BE schedule was announced, the men’s won’t be until after June 16 — when the conference will know about which players are staying in the draft. The TV contracts and slightly unbalanced schedule demand waiting. I do expect Pitt to have one of the toughest conference schedules this year.

I swear I will get to spring practice stuff. Really. But before I can, I have to make a plea to Pitt basketball. Get Penn State back on the schedule. I don’t care how. Just for a couple years. Even if Pitt has to go to State College twice for one trip to the Pete for next season.

This just has to happen. At least as long as Stanley Pringle remains with the Nittany Lions. He has his defense.

Pringle told police he has “a bad habit of putting his hand down his pants,” and demonstrated for the officer by placing his hand down the front of his sweatpants, according to the complaint.

“Why would I need to masturbate?” he told police. “This is how I chill, ma’am.”

Disturbingly, Pringle could, uh, get off. The woman didn’t actually see him actually see any shaking.

According to the criminal complaint, a woman said Pringle sat down on top of a desk behind her and asked if she wanted to purchase some hand lotion he was selling for the basketball team.

Sports Information Director Brian Siegrist declined to comment.

The woman told police that after 15 minutes of conversation with Pringle, she heard the sound of adjusting clothing followed by a “smacking sound, like Pringle’s hand was smacking against the skin of his body.”

The victim said she did not turn around because she was afraid, adding that she believed this to be the sound of masturbation and could see a reflection of Pringle’s hand moving back and forth, according to the criminal complaint.

…

The victim told police that after walking through the bookshelves while answering her phone, she saw Pringle rubbing his hands together, “as if he had just put lotion on them,” and when she returned to her seat, she said she saw Pringle tying the drawstring on his sweatpants.

Oh, please, please, please, please put Penn State on the home schedule for 2008-09.

Belated congrats to Sam Young for making the AP All-American Honorable Mention list. Reminder that the declaration date for declaring for the draft is April 27.

Tyreke Evans is one of the top HS guards in the country. He’s the top unsigned guard. He’s not considering Pitt (unfortunately) but the Philly kid did another interview and this was worth noting.

Evans has played with a number of great players at American Christian, so I asked the star who he felt was the best of all, and he told me it was “Nasir [Robinson].” Although Robinson is currently at Chester (PA), he did spend some time at ACA with Evans. I asked Evans if he knew why Nasir left the school, and he simply said “no.”

Some of the players he’s played with at ACA included Martez Walker (decommitted from Louisville), Jerimiah Kelly (signed with DePaul), Kennan Ellis (UAB), Oscar Griffin (undecided SG for 2009), Lamont Jones (decommitted from Louisville).

The ESPN.com/Scouts, Inc. profile of 2009 Pitt commit Lamar Patterson is most encouraging.

A strong and athletic wing scorer with a solid handle. Patterson has three-point range and a nice mid-range pull-up. Given the slightest bit of daylight, Lamar will attack the rim with his long arms and explosiveness. He also has fine court vision to find open teammates.

Lamar is a strong and skilled wing. He is a good shooter and rebounder for his size. He is very talented and a better than average athlete. Lamar is also a very good passer with a decent handle. Rebounded and scored inside here. Talented with a great upside. Lamar is a top 75 talent in the 2009 class nationally.

There are days when I really despise the absolute prohibition by the Big East on recruiting any player who has even so much as signed a letter of intent with another Big East school. The BE has the harshest rule in all the conferences. Even in the Big 11, if a player wants to transfer to another member school he can as long as he pays his way.

This is a rule that dates back to the Conference’s earliest days. When recruiting was even more local and just as vicious. The fear was that teams would actually seek to raid each other to get players. The BE rejected even a minor tweak last year to allow players who had only signed the LOI, but was released following a coaching change.

PG Tyshawn Taylor wants to at least explore options now that Crean left Marquette. I have to believe that if the rule wasn’t there, ND would never been able to get McAlarney to come back after they kicked him out of school for a semester for Pot possession. They had to re-recruit the Long Island native, but no BE team could even approach him.

More attractive, though, would be the now former Villanova SG Malcolm Grant. He’s the one who torched Pitt from outside in January, and shot 46.6% from outside on the season. For whatever reason, he got buried on the bench by Jay Wright later into the season, and with it looking likely that he would stay there has asked for and received permission to transfer.

As a friend told me, nothing pops like a Pringle.

Penn State Police confirmed today that they have filed charges against Nittany Lions basketball player Stanley Pringle in an incident involving public masturbation that occurred last Thursday in Pattee Library.

Police said Pringle, the team’s point guard, sat behind the victim in the stacks section of the library, attempted to start a conversation with the woman and began masturbating. Police have filed charges of public lewdness and disorderly conduct against him in connection to the incident…

A similar incident occurred on March 21 on the second-floor landing of McElwain Hall’s main stairwell between 8 and 8:15 p.m, when police said a man entered the building behind the woman and followed her to the stairwell landing where he began to masturbate. A similar description of the man was given in both incidents, police said. No charges have been filed for the McElwain Hall incident.

Classic.

I hate to waste time on this sort of thing, but Bob Smizik’s usual column about how unimportant the Big East Tournament is, has come out. Honestly, I have a hard time getting worked up about most of what Smizik writes. Recycling the same columns, themes and just changing names has been his M.O. for years at this point.

Let’s give Smizik props for sticking with the position he has advocated before. At least he isn’t always a weather vane. He may have not said a damn word if Pitt had gone further, but that’s just human nature. Apparently playing well in the Big East Tournament is only bad for Pitt. G-town went to the Final Four last year after winning the BET. UConn won national champs in two of the three times it won the BET.

For Pitt, though, it is overemphasized because they had nothing left for the NCAA Tournament. Really, if Smizik was going to recycle a column, I would have expected his 2006 complaint about Pitt not being a good shooting team. You know, because they were too focused on defense and rebounding. He couldn’t complain about it in 2005, because Pitt lost in the first round of the BET. Don’t worry, he doubled it up in 2004, with focus on the unimportance of the BET and the regular season title, but then complained about how flawed Pitt was after losing the BET.

His theme this time, was that Pitt should have not played the 7-man rotation so much in the BET, even if it meant losing.

Gary McGhee, for example, did not get on the floor in the Big East tournament. That’s ridiculous. McGhee, a 6 foot 10 freshman, should have been part of the rotation, giving a rest to either Sam Young or DeJuan Blair so those two valuable players would be at their best for NCAA play and not possibly fatigued. Not only does it help Young and Blair, it gives McGhee valuable playing experience.

Brad Wanamaker, a player who might be starting next season, played a total of 16 minutes in the Big East tournament and did not get on the floor in the final two games. Wanamaker should have been used to spell Ronald Ramon and Levance Fields to keep them fresh for the more important games ahead.

As it was, Ramon and Young averaged 38 minutes and Fields 36 in the four Big East tournament games. Allocating those kind of minutes to a secondary tournament is poor coaching.

No one can be certain fatigue was the reason Ramon and Fields shot a combined 1 for 9 from 3-point range against Michigan State or that Young was 4 for 12 from the field. But it might have been, and that possibility should have been enough for Dixon to keep his players fresh instead of overextending them.

So, let’s say McGhee and Wanamaker got 10 minutes in each of those two games. Here’s the problem with that idea — I mean beyond the minimal actual impact on minutes.

It assumes the substitution is an individual occurrence. That the team doesn’t make adjustments to the rotation on hand. Like, having to help more inside with McGhee who is a step slow and not as sure inside. Or the other players having to work harder on offense because there is more pressure on the other 4 while McGhee is out there. The same can be argued for Wanamaker. He’s a solid defender, but his offense has been a non-factor and turnover risk in his freshman year.

I have high hopes for both. I think both will show marked improvement next season. That doesn’t mean you put them out there in these situations, and put these games at risk. To say nothing of the possibility of damaging their confidence if they make big mistakes in these situations.

I knew it was good for me to write about Pitt’s season having already been enough. Win or lose against Michigan State, it was enough. I’ve already reread that post five times – I’m positive it’s kept me from saying something I’ll regret later. I’ve had about 40 hours to digest it – I think it’s time to move on.

Having said that…ouch. That’s a tough one to lose. I can’t wait to hear the people saying Dixon still can’t win the big ones – I don’t think any coach can win when your team shoots like that. He wasn’t the one shooting 2 of freaking 17 on three pointers. Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin both played like crap and there’s no denying that. I’ve been pretty tough on both all year (especially Ramon) and this game didn’t help their cause. Still, thanks to them for giving so much to this program over the years and I hope them both the best in whatever their life takes them to next. It’s not like the seniors were the only ones to drop the ball though – everyone except for Fields played like #%@&. I’m not even mad anymore because, well, it’s over.

But hey, when Drew Neitzel is going to hit every shot he takes then you’re already fighting a losing battle. As Chas mentioned, Neitzel frustrated the hell out of everyone by both his crazy shots and his attitude. Someone I watched the game with, not a Pitt fan, commented on how much of a jerk he was and somebody from Pitt needed to foul him hard at the end of the game. I responded with some harsher words (one f-word followed by a different f-word) but whatever. Just add him to the list with Gerry McNamara and Chris Quinn – certified Panther killers.

Please don’t bring up the argument that they were worn down by the Big East Tournament. I’m not buying that excuse at all. These are 18-22 year old kids in the best shape of their lives. Sure four games in four days was tough but it was a whole week ago. The game against Oral Roberts was so easy and boring that it was like a day off anyways.

It also would have been nice for them to win for the simple fact it would have given us something to write about for another week. Blogging the offseason sucks.

I have been writing all day. Sadly, this bit of joy has been last on the list.

Ron Cook says this BET Championship is better than in 2003.

The 2003 championship was something special because of the way coach Ben Howland and guard Brandin Knight willed the Panthers to the title. But that Pitt team was much better during the season than this one. It was a No. 2 seed in the conference tournament and had to win three games — against Providence, Boston College and Connecticut — to cut down the nets.

Respectfully, this championship trumps that one.

The Pitt players showed so much toughness here that one New York columnist suggested they change the team name to Gritt. I like that. It fits.

“For whatever reason, I don’t think we were playing as aggressive as we needed to, say, 10 games ago,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. “We were able to get back into it and do the things we do. We have just been more physical, more aggressive. We’re more like we normally are. More like Pitt.”

I’m not going that far, because they were such different animals.

I wish they had shown more of the celebration on ESPN. They damn well better on the Pitt weekly propaganda show.

Pitt raised the Big East trophy at center court for the second time and ended years of frustration in this game. The Panthers had lost the past two Big East championship games and had won only once (2003) in six previous appearances.

The players brought the trophy over to Pitt fans that had made their way near the court, and the Panthers passed the trophy around like the Stanley Cup, each one of them getting to enjoy a moment with the hardware in their hands.

The rapid turnaround of Pitt is also a big theme.

ust 13 days ago, Pitt players were ripping themselves after an embarrassing loss at West Virginia, talking about how they couldn’t guard anyone.

Last night, they were ripping down the nets at Madison Square Garden, under the prideful watch of coach Jamie Dixon.

“I could have sat there all day and just watched them,” Dixon said.

Thirteen days ago, the Panthers looked like a team that had lost its identity, a team that couldn’t rebound or stop opponents from scoring easy baskets.

Last night, they completed a stunning four-game run that saw them topple Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette and Georgetown on successive nights.

The revival/reversal/turnaround was oft-repeated in the stories. NY papers loved to play the local angle.

“Levance Fields is a huge Giants fan and he came out and told the team, follow the Giants’ model,” said Pittsburgh guard Ronald Ramon of the Bronx, referring to the Panther point guard, who is a Brooklyn native. “They came out and played hard and came to win.”

The Panthers outworked and outhustled Georgetown, outrebounding the Hoyas by 41-29 and beating them in dives on the floor, loose balls corralled and the typical blue-collar nuances that have come to define Pittsburgh basketball.

The Giants’ comparison runs deep. The Panthers (26-9) had a solid but unspectacular regular season, just as the Giants did. Because Pittsburgh was only a No. 7 seed, it did not receive a bye and needed to win four games in four days. The Giants were a wild-card team and needed to win four games to win the Super Bowl. Georgetown (27-5) was not undefeated, as the Patriots were, but the Hoyas did enter the game a perfect 14-0 as a No. 1 seed in the Big East tournament.

Fields and New Jersey’s Brandin Knight, a former Pittsburgh star and now an assistant, hatched the analogy at the team hotel Friday night. Knight and Fields are the team’s resident Giants fans and got a laugh at recalling the similarities.

And the local players.

Fields is one of four local kids — along with forward Tyrell Biggs and guards Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin — who play major roles on this team, which may have earned a top-4 seed with this emotional victory.

Dick Weiss may have captured things in his local NY column.

“Without question, we’re New York’s team,” Fields said as he climbed down the ladder after helping cut down the net. “Nothing against St.John’s, but we have a lot of New York City kids and we win a lot, especially in New York.”

There are five players from the metropolitan area - Fields, Ramon, senior forward Tyrell Biggs, junior guard Keith Benjamin and freshman center Austin Wallace - on Pitt, and they acted as if they couldn’t care less that Georgetown was considered by many a favorite to win the national championship. This was for bragging rights in the neighborhood and the Panthers were not about to give the Hoyas the keys to the city.

Maybe that is what makes the Big East so special. It is tough, old-fashioned basketball, the way it is played on the playgrounds here, where winners stay on and losers go home. Seventh-seeded Pitt refused to leave, becoming only the second team to win four straight games in this tournament.

Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe was at the game, no doubt to see the Hoyas take the BET and be a potential #1 seed. Instead, he gave glowing press to Pitt.

The Panthers simply shrugged their shoulders and went to work, dispatching Cincinnati, Louisville, and Marquette to get their shot at top-seeded Georgetown, which had looked so good in its own march to the championship game that many of us were thinking they had an outside chance for a No. 1 seed, assuming the Hoyas could get by Pitt.

Well, they couldn’t. Georgetown is good and Georgetown is tough, but last night Pitt was better, and there is no doubt Pitt was tougher.

In beating Georgetown, another theme was that Pitt broke through after coming close.

In recent years, Pittsburgh had often reached this point of the conference tournament before faltering. They had won but one championship in six previous Big East title games this decade. Now that the Panthers have raised that record to 2-5, they can look to larger horizons.

First under the coaching of Ben Howland and now with Jamie Dixon for the last five seasons, they have often entered the N.C.A.A. tournament as a highly rated team, only to disappoint. They have made the Round of 16 four times in the past six seasons, but have not advanced beyond that.

And Pitt does seek to break that barrier as well.

“National championship teams haven’t done what we’ve done over seven years,” Dixon said. “But at the same time, that is our ultimate goal — and we don’t have problems discussing that — but it doesn’t take away from what we’ve done.”

Much attention goes to Coach Dixon for what this team has accomplished this season.

Since everybody’s talking about voting do-overs these days, would a re-vote for Big East coach of the year yield the same results?

Probably not.

It wouldn’t be Notre Dame’s Mike Brey. Not after what Jamie Dixon pulled off Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. Really, what he’s pulled off after a bleak, injury-filled start.

…

Dixon’s a star now. He should be the Big East coach of the year.<

Pittsburgh fans, you really should believe this team is going places.

Whether it really does dismiss the doubters is a different issue.

If any doubt of Jamie Dixon’s coaching ability existed, it disappeared this week. If any part of his success was still being attributed to Ben Howland, it vanished Saturday.

Dixon’s fifth season as the Pitt Panthers’ coach has been his best. Better than the 31 wins of his first season. Better than the Sweet 16 of last season.

The Pitt Panthers are the Big East champions after Saturday’s 74-65 victory over No. 9 Georgetown. That’s a statement few could have imagined a few weeks ago.

For the better part of two months while dealing with injuries, Dixon kept the team together though its common thread was hanging by one. And now that the Panthers are primarily healthy, Dixon has the group believing and rolling heading into the NCAA Tournament.

Yet, Dixon does try to downplay and deflect getting through this season.

Drake coach Keno Davis is a natural for coach of the year consideration, what with his out-of-nowhere rise to prominence, but Dixon may have done something even more unprecedented. He used band-aids, gumption and stubborn conviction to win what is easily the most difficult league in the country.

“I think people try to make it more dramatic than it is,” Dixon said. “There’s all this talk. I was who I was and I wasn’t going to change. Any change the players would have been able to figure out and realized I wasn’t real. I tried to not make it as big a transition to me and to others and I’ll continue to downplay it.”

But if this team possesses anything, it is Dixon’s personality. Even the unassuming Young is a closet Dixon. He doesn’t say much about being irked by naysayers, but privately he collects press clippings in his locker and warehouses negative comments, building a private Rolodex of motivation.

A little longer to savor this, before stressing on the NCAA Tournament.

Feels good, huh?

Tyrell Biggs needs to be recognized for his job well done in the last two games. DeJuan Blair found himself sitting on the bench a lot and Biggs came in and saw many more minutes than he’s usually going to see. The last two games he’s played 31 and 23 minutes respectively, more than Blair has played each game. Last night he made both shots he took as well as grabbing 4 rebounds. Without role players who can come in and hold down the fort, any team is going to have trouble. Biggs came in, didn’t look too overwhelmed, and it was good to see him perform so well off the bench.

Levance Fields ran the offense last night as well as he has in a while. Along with his 10 points, he added 6 assists and only turned it over once. If you’re asking for anything more than your that from your PG, you might be a little crazy. Sure he struggled from the line but it’s excusable for one game.

The team free throw shooting was poor (50%) but instead how about we focus on the positive – we got to the line 44 (!) times. Georgetown? Nine times.

Ronald Ramon put up a game high 17 points (tied with Hibbert) and drove the lane for at least three or four of his field goals, something we’ve almost never seen from him. What possessed him to drive to the hoop might be mystery, but he did it well enough to score or at least get fouled.

How about Gil Brown? He played the game of his career to date and it’s been great to see how he’s progressed this year. After Cook and Fields went down he was thrown into he mix and saw big minutes but didn’t look so comfortable. Now he looks like he’s found his spot and knows where to fit in. And damn, can he jump out of the gym or what?

Sam Young, thank you for playing defense. Three blocked shots including the early one on Roy Hibbert. Pitt thrives on emotion (what team doesn’t?) and when he pinned the ball against the backboard it got the entire team pumped up. Add the great job he’s done on offense the last four nights and Young got the well-deserved MVP. It seemed like more recently he’s been into the game the whole time, always alert even if he doesn’t touch the ball every possession. It’s a welcomed change.

From what I could tell through the noise at Buffalo Wild Wings in Robinson, the Pitt fans were far better than the Georgetown fans at the Garden. Were there just more Pitt fans than Hoyas? Someone who was there in person, let us know. The ESPN cameras panned over the Pitt students at least five times, compared to the one times they showed a few Georgetown fans. MSG really is our second home (and we went 6-0 in games there this year).

Talk about a physical game, this was it. This is classic Big East basketball – tons of pounding around the hoop, five guys going up for a rebound at once, and hands and elbows being thrown everywhere. Thing is, in 75% of NCAA Tourney games, this kind of physicality isn’t going to be good for Pitt. If we get an ACC or Big XXII ref crew, we could be in for a long game. Fouls that are usually never called during conference games will be easy whistles in the tournament. And you thought Blair was in foul trouble enough already.

The brackets will be released in under 8 hours (holy crap, Selection Sunday came fast), and I think after beating three ranked teams in three days on a neutral court plus an RPI of 15, we shouldn’t be anything less than a 5 seed. Sure the committee could screw us and slot us as a 6, but anything worse than that shouldn’t even be in the question. Also, the feeling is nice to know we kept the Hoyas from getting a #1 seed.

Great night, great week. Congrats to our Big East champs.