Still not a lot of spare time. Okay, I’ve been doing a lot of brackets tonight. Here are the articles of note, a little late but worth a glance.

The P-G beat writer worries about Pitt’s offense. Historically in the NCAA Tournament, if a team averages under 70 points per game they don’t make it to the final four. Hard to be that concerned when Pitt is at 69.2 points per game.

Page has been sitting out practices. Seems his ankle has been acting up again. Please tell me he has at least been practicing his stroke.

Joe Starkey of the Trib thinks Taft should and can be the go-to scorer the Panthers need to go deep in the Tourney. I’m all for it, even if it means Taft would leave after this season.

ESPN puff-piece on Coach Jamie Dixon. Nothing we haven’t read before.

Jay Bilas of ESPN is still sticking up for Pitt.

That said, there is no way Pittsburgh is a No. 3 seed. Further, there is no way Pitt should be playing against Wisconsin in Milwaukee. This is a bad seed and a bad matchup.

The Panthers did play Alabama, Florida State and Georgia, but overall scheduled a relatively weak nonconference slate. Pitt won five games against the top 25 (only Duke won more such games) and won nine against the top 50 (only Duke, Kentucky and UConn won more). And, as much as I respect Gonzaga, I would have put Pitt ahead of the Zags in seeding.

And where does it fit that Pitt has to play Wisconsin in Milwaukee? That strikes me as a bit unfair. Did it occur to anyone that Wisconsin has the highest RPI of any No. 6 seed, should have been seeded higher, and can bump and grind very nicely against Pitt. To have to play Wisconsin in its own backyard is hardly a reward. In fact, it’s just another chip on the shoulders of the Panthers.

Pitt has more to be concerned about than just seeding and location. The Panthers are a really physical team that stands you up on a team’s cuts, bumps its foe off its path, and denies every spot on the floor. All this throws a team off its rhythm, as well as equilibrium, and makes Pitt one of the best defensive teams in the country.

However, NCAA Tournament games — especially in early rounds — will be called closer than Big East games and will have mixed crews. The Panthers need to adjust early to the way the game is being called, or foul trouble could follow. Remember, basketball is the only game in which you can be disqualified for making simple mistakes. Nobody fouls out in football or gets sent to the bench by the umpires for errors. Officiating can be a big factor in winning and losing in the NCAA Tournament.

It’s that last paragraph that has me worried. The BET last week had the refs letting a lot go uncalled. Hopefully Pitt will be able to adjust during their first game on Friday night. 9:50pm. I’ll be watching flash ins because I know they’ll be showing the Xavier-Lousiville matchup in Cleveland.

Pitt press release and game notes for Friday’s game.

Very useful. Pitt’s post-season media guide

You can download the entire thing in PDF.