I don’t know if anyone saw the Texas A&M upset over #7 Texas last night (P.J. Tucker is wearing goat horns, not longhorns after he dribbled out the shot clock because he mistook the game clock for it). One of the things that struck me is how much more than any other sport or level the home court advantage seems to be worth in college basketball. Especially, it seems, this year. I was thinking of taking a closer look at it as one of those summer project posts. Lots of stuff to sort through, but interesting. Either that, or just e-mail Ken Pomeroy and see if I could get him curious enough to do it instead.
I bring this up, because this column lauds Pitt’s home court advantage.
The Pirates haven’t had a winning home record in their five seasons at PNC Park. The Penguins haven’t had a winning home season at Mellon Arena since 2000-01. The Pitt football program hasn’t capitalized on its move to Heinz Field, going 23-9 in home games with notable crushing defeats against Notre Dame, Nebraska, Miami, West Virginia and South Florida. Not even the Steelers have played lights-out at home. They won the Super Bowl, but they went just 5-3 last season at Heinz Field. They’re 32-12-1, including playoffs, with just one perfect season — 8-0 in 2004 — at the new stadium.
That makes Pitt’s home success more astounding. If you count Pitt’s final year at Fitzgerald Field House, it is 80-6 in home games since the start of the 2001-02 season. Is that good value for your entertainment dollars or what?
…
“When you’re playing at home, you expect to win,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. “But maybe we have taken it to another level …“It’s been great for the university. That’s the thing that makes me most proud. People see our games on national television and hear the talk about the Petersen Events Center. They see the excitement. It gives our university an image of school pride and professionalism. That’s great exposure for us.”
The home games have become a valuable recruiting tool for Pitt. Everybody loves a winner. Pitt has sold all season tickets it has made available since it moved to the Petersen Center, almost 11,000 this season, prompting Dixon to say, “It’s almost like our games have become an event.” The building, packed and throbbing, makes for an impressive picture in person or on television. And it doesn’t hurt when Dick Vitale gets on the air and starts screaming about the energy in the Oakland Zoo, as Pitt’s student section is affectionately known. In that Sports Illustrated poll, the Big East players mentioned the “creativity” of the Zoo’s more animated creatures as an intimidating factor in Pitt’s success.
“Recruits definitely talk about it,” Dixon said. “You bring them to a game, and they see the environment. It’s good. It helps us a lot.”
I just don’t think you can compare the home advantage of college basketball to any other sport. It is so drastically different.
The article notes that in a survey of Big East players (SI dead wood subs. only) they ranked the Pete as the toughest place to play:
“The fans get there early to start heckling you. It’s like a zoo.” … “They have a nice, new arena. The student section is next to the court, and the fans there say some creative stuff.”
The Pete got 36% of the vote on that (no listing of other venue’s rankings). At 45%, Carl Krauser was voted the biggest trash talker:
“He tests you to see what’s going on inside your head. If he sees he has control, he’ll keep talking.”
Gerry McNamara, Syracuse was voted “Biggest Crybaby” and tied with Rudy Gay for “Most Overrated” (Gay was also the overwhelming choice for “Best Future Pro”).
UConn Coach Jim Calhoun winner of “Coach You Would Least Like To Play For” and his team was considered the “Team That Most Fears Respects Its Coach.”
Then in this notebook piece, there is this:
Pitt coach Jamie Dixon was named Coach of the Year in the Big East Conference by collegeinsider.com.
Dixon, in his third season as head coach and seventh season overall at Pitt, has led the Panthers to a 21-5 record thus far, the program’s fifth consecutive 20-win season. Pitt plays host to Seton Hall on Friday in its regular-season finale.
The Internet site also named West Virginia’s Mike Gansey as the Big East’s MVP and Villanova’s Randy Foye as the league’s Player of the Year.
You can see the list for each conference here. This site always amuses me because it is so heavy on college basketball coaches and the other site established and having coaches laud their site. Yet the home page is filled with ads for gambling and ticket brokers. No mixed messages there from the pious coaches.
