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FAIL TO PITT … AGAIN
I don’t want to say that Friday night’s first round game between BR-35 Pittsburgh and BR-37 Wisconsin set basketball back two decades, but fans in both Pittsburgh and Madison had to wonder if they replaced the regulation nets inside St. Louis’ Scottrade Center with peach baskets and if they held a jump ball after every basket.
While the Badgers eventually escaped with a 47-43 win, the game was almost more reminiscent of the finale of the movie “Hoosiers” where Hickory High won the state title game by a score of 42-40 (we can confirm that there were no Jimmy Chitwood sightings in St. Louis) than a modern 2016 men's college basketball game.
It’s just the latest in series of “so close, yet so far away” seasons for the Panthers, who haven’t gotten into the second weekend of March Madness since losing a 78-76 thriller in the 2009 Elite Eight to Villanova in Boston. And that’s not even factoring in missing the 2012 and 2015 tourneys.
With Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon mentioned as a leading candidate for the vacant head coaching spot at his alma mater, Texas Christian, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Panthers are looking for a new head coach this offseason should Dixon bail. And that wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world among the faithful on Forbes Avenue, seeing as Pitt has gone from a top-notch squad in the old Big East to a mediocre unit in today’s ACC, which almost seems appropriate since Pitt is, if you believe some of it's fanbase, a "MAC school masquerading as a Power Five program."
The ACC, meanwhile, is 12-1 in March Madness so far. Out of the seven ACC teams who reached the field, take a lucky guess as to which team's staying home during the Sweet 16… That's right: Pittsburgh.
If Dixon does return to Fort Worth to rebuild the TCU program, don't expect a lot of tears to be shed from the Oakland Zoo…
