It almost seems too soon for the second round to seem so close. (Of course, not getting back to the computer since yesterday morning has an effect as well.) The Pitt-Oklahoma St. game is the match-up of the Sweet 16. The only one between two top-ten teams. OSU has been given the edge because they have been the better offensive team, while it’s defense has been excellent all year long. In the Tourney, so far, OSU’s offense has looked impressive, while Pitt’s has barely registered a pulse. Being objective, it’s hard to argue. The only contra argument is the opponents faced by OSU so far were not exactly defensive minded teams. Pitt, on the other hand, faced a very tough UCF team and the #4 defense in the country in Wisconsin. Pitt has been the #1 defensive team in the tournament (though near or at the bottom on the offense).
The similarity of teams and the way they play is a theme expected to beat into the ground. The fact that Pitt has started to win the close ones in the Tourney hopefully will be a plus in their favor against OSU. Who really knows.
A week ago, even while I was still pissed about the seeding, I did note the one good thing for Pitt in the East (Rutherford) Bracket.
This means that if it gets to the Sweet 16, the next two games will be in New Jersey. That’s the closest regional to Pittsburgh and Pitt actually has large alumni bases in Philly, NY and NJ.
Not only does Pitt expect to draw support from the New York-New Jersey types, but it is certain to see a greater number of its fans in East Rutherford than it did Milwaukee, where about 1,000 Panthers followers attended.
…
Those traveling to East Rutherford should have an easier time getting there than into Milwaukee, which offered very few direct flights. The airports in Newark and LaGaurdia accommodate a large number of direct flights from Pittsburgh daily and there is always the option of driving.So, when you factor in better travel opportunities for Pitt fans, difficult travel for Cowboys fans, and a Big East Conference influence in the New York-New Jersey area, the Panthers should have an edge this go-round from a crowd standpoint, even though Oklahoma State reached its most recent Final Four (1995) through East Rutherford.
When even the NY Times decides to play up Pitt’s NYC talent, you can expect the other dailies to do even more.
