The Big East announced it’s indvidual awards. Emeka Okafor of UConn won Big East Player and Defensive Player of the year honors. No shock there. In fact the awards were pretty much as expected, with Pitt winning the rest. Coach Jamie Dixon won Coach of the Year; Chris Taft — Rookie of the Year; Carl Krauser — Most Improved Player; and Jaron Brown — Sportsmanship Award.

Dixon is in his first year as head coach of the Panthers. For the previous four seasons, he was the team’s associate head coach under Ben Howland. Dixon guided the 2003-04 team to a 27-3 overall record and the program’s third straight 13-3 BIG EAST mark. The Panthers are the regular season league champions and the top seed in The BIG EAST Championship. Dixon’s selection marks the first time in conference history that the Coach of the Year award was won by someone who is in his first year as a head coach.

Taft, a 6-10 native of Coney Island, N.Y., became an immediate force in the paint for the Panthers. The freshman averaged 11.4 points and a team-leading 7.7 rebounds. He shot 57.1 percent from the field. Taft was named BIG EAST Rookie of the Week six times.

Krauser, a 6-2 sophomore guard, moved into the starting lineup this season after backing up standout Brandin Knight. Krauser averaged 6.0 points and 2.9 assists last year. This season, the native of the Bronx, N.Y. is first on the team with a 15.3 scoring average and a 4.8 assist mark while directing the Panthers to their regular season crown.

Brown has been a part of the most successful Panther tenure in BIG EAST history. In his four seasons, Pittsburgh has compiled a 103-28 record. On the court, Brown averaged 11.9 points and 5.5 rebounds. Off the court, he has been nominated for several campus honors involving academic and athletic excellence, including the Senior of Distinction Award.

Cool.

The Big East Tournament (BET) has been going on since 1980. Starting in 1983, coincidentally the first year they started playing at Madison Square Garden, there would be at least one play-in game to add a 4th day of games. No team in the BET has won when having to play 4 games in 4 days. Only twice has a team even made it to the Championship game when playing on the first day. UConn in 2000, before falling to St. John’s; and Pitt in 2001, only to have nothing left in the tank against Boston College.

Looking at the bracket this year, there is the potential for two teams to make it to the championship game, but I believe only one has the potential to actually win it. Seton Hall has the potential to make it to the final game. It would have to beat a feisty, but sloppy and mentally soft Villanova team on Wednesday. The next opponent would be #3 seed, Providence. Providence has lost 2 straight — badly. Their confidence is shaky, and the Hall has the kind of team that can beat them. After that, it would be a semi-final match against UConn or even Notre Dame. If Okafor is out, or just being “rested,” Seton Hall has the potential to win that game with its shooters. In the championship game, though, the likely opponent would be Syracuse or Pitt. Both are very physical, and that extra game would catch up with them at this point. I don’t think they could win that 4th game.

The other team would be Boston College. BC appears to be peaking at the right time. It should have not problem with a bad Georgetown team that backed into the #12 seed. The next 2 games would be the toughest. They would play Syracuse (probably the “hottest” team in the Big East at the moment) and then (most likely) Pitt. Those would be two physically gruelling games, and there would be real questions of how much they would have left in their tanks to take on (presumably) Providence or UConn. BC beat Providence this past weekend, and UConn probably wouldn’t be willing to risk Okafor much in that game. BC would have a chance.

First Round
I think you have to go with the higher seeds in all of the first round games. BC should have no problem with Georgetown. Notre Dame is scrambling to get into the NCAA, and WVU just isn’t that good off its home court.

Seton Hall could have trouble with Villanova, and it will probably be a tough game, but Villanova hasn’t shown any ability to close the deal in a close game against a good opponent. Plus ‘Nova is now 0-8 on national TV this year.

Virginia Tech has been improving all season, while Rutgers has blown chances to even get on the NCAA bubble in the last 2 weeks. VT will have the best player on the court in senior guard, first team all-Big East, Bryant Matthews.

Second Round
Call it bias, but would anyone really pick against Pitt against VT or Rutgers? You could conceivably construct the scenario, with Krauser, Taft, and McCarroll all local products distracted by the hometown attention; but I doubt it.

Syracuse versus BC. Think ESPN would love to shift this one from 2pm to 7 or 9pm? The 2 hottest teams by the end of the regular season. This should be a great game. I give the edge to Syracuse, but a BC win wouldn’t be a shock.

Notre Dame against UConn. I’m working from the assumption that Okafor will play sparingly if at all. UConn is a #2 seed in the NCAA no matter what, so you don’t risk Okafor. UConn lost to ND in South Bend the last time they played. Even without Okafor, I like a Jim Calhoun coached team in the BET. ND will make it tough, knowing that a win against UConn may push them into the NCAA; but I don’t think ND is tough enough to win that second game in a row without Francis.

Providence against Seton Hall. The way Providence has lost the final two games of the season has everyone wondering about this team. I wonder if the team has allowed itself to be distracted by the rumors that have surrounded coach Tim Welsh and possibly St. John’s taking a run at him. If so, it won’t help to be playing in NYC. I’m going to pick Seton Hall.

Third Round
Pitt in the rubber match against Syracuse. As good as Syracuse has been playing, and as bad as Pitt looked against them last game, this will be more like the first game in the Carrier Dome. Pitt will get the ball inside this time on offense, and Syracuse will again find limited shots on the perimeter. Pitt.

UConn and Seton Hall. Seton Hall could win if its shooters are on, but I think Seton Hall will be gassed by halftime of this game. I pick UConn.

Championship
For the 3rd straight year, Pitt versus UConn. I can’t imagine Calhoun letting Okafor anywhere near the court with Pitt. Pitt is just too physical for him to risk it. UConn is still very good on the inside, but I like Taft and Troutman over Boone and Villanueva. Unless Gordon and Brown start hoisting and hitting from the NBA 3-point line, I don’t see how Pitt’s defenders let them get many good shots.

In my, oh so biased, opinion. Pitt to repeat.