You know, I’m really not that worried right now about Arizona State poaching Coach Jamie Dixon. I even felt that way before I read this from Andy Katz (Insider Subs)

Meanwhile, Pitt athletic director Jeff Long couldn’t praise Jamie Dixon enough during the Big East tournament in New York. The plan is for the Panthers to do everything they can to keep Dixon from even listening to other offers. Arizona State and Missouri already have sent out feelers and, if anything, Dixon might listen just to listen. Long is expected to discuss with Dixon’s representation a bump in pay and perhaps an extension.

The reason is, that there isn’t the constant drumbeat out of Arizona that Dixon is the guy. It seems to be more that he is on the list, but they aren’t sure how interested he really is.

There isn’t a message and leaks suggesting that it is Dixon or bust, the way there was for months leading up to Howland leaving for UCLA. And it isn’t a situation like that, where there were lots of other reasons — besides money — to take the job. Right now, ASU is still trying to present an image as an attractive option. Lon Kruger at UNLV, says he doesn’t want the job. Kelvin Sampson was thought to be a target and interested, but with Oklahoma facing some sanctions, he isn’t that attractive an option.

To get a coach like Jamie Dixon to leave a good situation, they have to offer more than money and a long contract. They have to have things in position to show that they are ready to upgrade the facilities, that there is lots of support, and that the support isn’t shallow. That doesn’t seem to be there at the moment. As we learned with Pitt’s pursuit of Skip Prosser, when a hot coach is in a good situation, he can really take his time.

I do expect ASU and even Missouri to take a run at Dixon, barring AD Long and Dixon’s agent working out a new deal in the next week or two, but I think like Skip Prosser, will end up choosing the new extension, familiarity and stability to stay where he is.

This is a little something extra. In the opening round game, Pitt won’t be the only team with a coach being eyeballed for other jobs.

Now that Kent State will be in this week’s NCAA men’s basketball tourney — airing on CBS — it’ll be interesting to see how network analysts address talk that Kent head coach Jim Christian is being eyed by Rhode Island to lead that program.

I guess Rhode Island and the A-10 is a step up from the MAC. That’s assuming the Jim Harrick stain has finally been scrubbed through.

There is nothing better than being the stay-at-home dad, with only a little work to do this time of the year.

Here’s the schedule of games for Thursday and Friday (hat tip, Jack). Seton Hall-Witchita St. kick off the first day (sorry, I don’t count Tuesday’s play-in game to be the sacrificial 4th 16th seed) at 12:20 pm. Don’t forget to sign-up for the free March Madness on Demand to watch streaming video of games not shown in your media market.

Games that have my interest for Thursday: Pacific-BC; Alabama-Marquette; Xavier-Gonzaga; Texas A&M-Syracuse; and SDSU-Indiana.

On Friday I think the highlights will include: Bucknell-Arkansas; Arizona-Wisconsin; NIU-Georgetown; SIU-WVU; NC St.-Cal; UAB-Kentucky; and of course, Kent St.-Pitt.

Reminder that PSB has a Group set up for ESPN’s Tournament Challenge. Group name: Pitt Sports Blather.

Now, while I may be done discussing the seeding issue, the local papers need their space.

The strangest thing about the Oakland bracket is how many Pitt connections there are in the coaches.

Fifth-seeded Pitt will meet 12th-seeded Kent State, coached by former Pitt assistant Jim Christian, in the first round Friday; Memphis, the top seed, is coached by former Pitt assistant John Calipari and will face 16th-seeded Oral Roberts on Friday; second-seeded UCLA, coached by former Pitt coach Ben Howland, battles 15th-seeded Belmont on Thursday; seventh-seeded Marquette, which meets 10th-seeded Alabama on Thursday, is coached by former Pitt assistant Tom Crean; and Xavier, the 14th seed, is coached by former Pitt star Sean Miller and will play third-seeded Gonzaga on Thursday.

Calipari was an assistant under Paul Evans and Christian and Crean were assistants for Ralph Willard. Considering the job done by the selection committee, I can’t believe this was intentional.

The storyline on the seeding seems to be, that this is par for the course the last few years.

The Pitt Panthers should be accustomed to this by now. Play the regular season, the Big East Conference tournament and then watch the NCAA selection committee drop them like an anchor. It’s become an annual occurrence, as much a part of the calendar year as Christmas, Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July.
…
Pitt coach Jamie Dixon tried to rationalize the seeding. Dixon has attended meetings with selection committee members at the Final Four. He said the committee reserves the right to move a team up or down one spot in the brackets to make the brackets work.

Dixon said he knew there would be some movement this year because the Big East received an NCAA-record eight bids.

“We’re No. 11 in the RPI,” Dixon said. “Generally that can get you a No. 3 or 4 [seed]. But they can move you up or down, depending upon where they want to keep you. … geography, keeping you close. With our thing, we knew there would be some adjusting because of the eight teams in the Big East. They couldn’t have three in one bracket. We knew some things would come into play. They can move you up or down the line to account for things, and it’s not so much where they think you should be.”

If South Carolina and/or Ohio State had won, I really think Pitt would have been slotted a 3. It really seems, looking at the full bracket, that the only thing keeping Pitt from a 3 seed were the finishes of Florida and Iowa to win their Conference Tournaments.

Aaron Gray briefly talked about his play late in the Big East Tournament.

Junior center Aaron Gray missed an inordinate number of shots from close to the basket in the final two games of the Big East tournament. He missed dunks, layups, any variety of close-in shots that he made routinely in the regular season.

Gray appeared to get a case of the yips as he short-armed shots and played more tentative than he had all season.

“I definitely think it’s more mental than my physical capabilities,” Gray said. “My coaches and teammates have a lot of confidence in me. They kept passing me the ball. I’ll just have to keep on working on it for the NCAA tournament.”

Dixon did not seem concerned with Gray’s shooting woes.

“He came back strong in the second half against Villanova,” Dixon said. “He made some shots and missed shots. I thought he was pretty good all the way through. We kept going to him. I feel real good about him.”

I think I would have preferred to hear him say he was tired, not it being in his head.

The players are trying to focus on the game at hand:

“Oh, man. I can’t wait for that,” Krauser said. “I was there watching Antonio Gates have such a good game. It’s always good to go against Kent State.”

“There will be a bit of a rivalry,” said center Aaron Gray.

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon even regaled the current Panthers of the lore of how that 2002 team, coached by Howland, had an excellent chance to get to the Final Four, with a No. 10 seed as a Sweet 16 opponent and No. 1 Duke upset by Indiana just minutes before Pitt and Kent State met

“Coach was talking about it,” said guard Ronald Ramon. “We want to go out there and be humble, but make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Starkey dismisses the seeding issues to focus on the Golden Flashes.

“If anybody mistakes Kent for a mid-major or a team that’s just lucky to get in, it’d be a huge mistake,” he [Western Michigan Assistant Coach Cornell Mann] said. “The difference for Pitt will have to be, you better respect these guys. If you trick yourself into thinking this team isn’t real – and with younger guys, that can happen – you may be looking out of a bus window on your way home.”

Akron assistant Shaka Smart believes the teams could wage a game in the 50s. Both play aggressive, half-court, man-to-man defense, though Kent State — under former Pitt assistant Jim Christian — will use a 2-3 zone.

Pitt center Aaron Gray must contend with Kent State’s penchant for trapping in the post with long-armed, 6-6 forward Mike Scott.

“Kent State has four seniors who kind of willed them to win late in the season,” Smart said. “Whoever wins is going to have to earn it.”

Pitt has a huge advantage inside, as Kent State’s tallest regular is 6-9 forward Nate Gerwig (Schenley). Syracuse pounded the Golden Flashes for 52 points in the paint in a 78-66 victory in December.

Offensively, Kent State is balanced and likes to shoot 3-pointers. The two main weapons are 6-5 swingman Jay Youngblood and ultra-athletic, 6-2 senior point guard DeAndre Haynes, the MAC’s top player.

“His favorite move is to pull up off the dribble,” Mann said. “Their offense is about as simple as you can get. He’ll penetrate and kick to somebody to shoot the three or make something happen himself.”

They don’t make a lot of extra passes before shooting. They only have around a 55% A/Baskets Made%

The game between Pitt and Kent State should have a lot of fans for both teams making the trip. It may only be a 5 hour drive from Pittsburgh, but it is an even shorter trip for most Northeast Ohioans.

“We were hoping for the No. 12 (seed),” said Scott Day, a 1996 graduate of Kent State. “No. 12 is always a big upset.”

Players, coaches, athletic staff and fans crunched into the student union’s basement to watch the announcement live on CBS. As the projection screen showed the Panthers cheering from Pittsburgh, CBS commentator Greg Gumbel said the words that ignited the crowd of several hundred fans.

“They will play… the Kent State Golden Flashes.”

It was great news for three KSU players — seniors DeAndre Haynes and Jay Youngblood and redshirt freshman Isaac Knight are Detroit natives.

It was also great news for fans, many of whom will make the three-hour drive.

Four years ago, Day watched from a Cuyahoga Falls sports bar as KSU upset Pittsburgh to advance to the Elite Eight.

“I’d love to see them play again,” said Day, who this time plans to attend the game.

This will be an interesting venue for Kent State, since they have recruited with success from the area. It also means potential distractions.

DeAndre Haynes is going home. So are his Kent State teammates, Jay Youngblood and Isaac Knight.

All three are Detroit natives, and all three will travel to the Palace of Auburn Hills later this week as the No. 12 seeded Golden Flashes face No. 5 seed Pittsburgh on Friday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Game time will be announced today.
…
Perhaps it’s fitting that the Flashes (25-8) play the Panthers (24-7) in Motown. Detroit has long been KSU’s recruiting hotbed. Some of the school’s best players have emerged from within the city limits, including Antonio Gates (2002-03), Andrew Mitchell (1999-02), Ed Norvell (1996-99) and Anthony Grier (1982-85).

Assistant coach Arnette Jordan is working hard to make sure that doesn’t change.

Jordan is a former Detroit high school basketball player and coach.

It will be a concern for the KSU coaches to make sure their players from the area don’t come out pressing, trying to do too much before their friends and family. With all of that local flavor on their roster, Pitt can expect much more of the crowd to favor Kent St.

Kent St. are a superstitious lot.

From the first game this season, a 65-56 loss to Delaware State, KSU players and coaches began falling into a lucky charm repetition of things that seemed to favor victory while discarding that which came with defeat.

It started at the top with head coach Jim Christian. He would not call them “superstitions” but Christian acknowledged he had “rituals.” He wore the same clothes during the MAC Tournament. And his favorite shoes “haven’t seen the light of day” since Kent lost that opener.
layers said everything started to mount over the course of the season. If assistant coaches switched up the order of how they delivered game plans, players would have coaches start the sessions over again.

During the MAC Tournament, DeAndre Haynes focused on 7 a.m. wake-up calls. A locker room fan was not turned on when the team first won at The Q. It wasn’t turned on again. Players said they all started walking the same way. For Kevin Warzynski, “Everything I did was left side first. Left sock, left shoe.”

Senior center Nate Gerwig would not wash his uniform. “I didn’t want to lose that good sweat,” he said.

I really hope it gets washed before Friday.

I’m mostly spent on being pissed about the seeding. After a certain point it gets whiny. So unless I find a really good story, I’m mostly done with the issue.

Best article on the job done by the selection committee is from John Hollinger.

This year was no exception, as it inexplicably seeded Tennessee as a no. 2 ahead of North Carolina, and gift-wrapped a no. 5 seed for Nevada based largely, if not entirely, on its RPI ranking.

If it had followed that pattern consistently, I’d at least be somewhat okay with it. No, it’s not a great way to decide how to put 64 teams into the tournament field or rank them, but if everybody knows those are the rules when the season starts, there’s at least a sense of fairness about the whole thing.

What happened instead is that the committee used the RPI – except when it wasn’t convenient, in which case it ignored it. For instance, the committee had no problem putting everybody in the RPI top 35 into the tournament – unless that team was named Missouri State or Hofstra. In those cases, the RPI was dismissed as a fluke and other criteria were found.

Another columnist thinks the seeding issue was because they rewarded the mid-majors this year.

As the little teams made it, something had to suffer and it might have been the seeding. George Washington was pounded to an eight seed for its just-one-level-above-NAIA schedule, but let the head-scratching begin with Tennessee as a two.

Indiana as a six? The Hoosiers were called a bubble team entering the Big Ten Tournament. Big East strongmen Pitt and West Virginia grabbing a five and a six respectively? Surviving that conference schedule with the national reputation intact should have merited better seeds.

Mike DeCourcy at the Sporting News thinks that the controversy over teams left out managed to provide more cover to the selection committee for their seeding decision-making.

Tennessee at No. 2? Inexplicable. Pittsburgh had more wins against the field and better records against the top 25, top 50 and top 100 – and was seeded three spots lower.

Syracuse at No. 5? The Orange spent four months demonstrating they’re just OK, then four days showing you something different. Which do you believe?

Indiana at No. 6? The Hoosiers are there with an 18-11 record — basically the same numbers that couldn’t get Cincinnati into the field.

Montana at No. 12? Ask Gonzaga if it would rather play Xavier or Montana.

Davidson at No. 15? The Wildcats beat Massachusetts, Saint Joseph’s and Missouri, the kinds of games others low seeds are happy to lose close. If Montana can be a 12, why not Davidson?

George Washington at No. 8? The Colonials won 93 percent of their games. If you’re No. 1 seed Duke, would you prefer a potential second-round game against a team that has that solid a formula over one against an underachiever?

I’m not seeing anyone predict Pitt to take the 5-12 gas pipe (yet), but there aren’t many picking Pitt to make it past Kansas to the Sweet 16 either. I did find a couple exceptions, including one that is sending Pitt to Indy.

Most underseeded: Pittsburgh is a No. 5, but the Panthers could make a case that they should be a No. 4 and maybe even a No. 3. They made a nice run to the Big East tourney final and finished 11th in the RPI. And Bradley can make a case that it should be an 11 or a 12 rather than a 13.
…
1st-round winners: Memphis, UCLA, Gonzaga, Kansas, Pitt, Marquette, Arkansas and San Diego State.

2nd round-winners: Memphis, UCLA, Gonzaga and Pitt.

Sweet 16 winners: Gonzaga and Pitt.

Advancing to the Final Four: Pitt. (Sentinel staffer Dave Curtis says Memphis and staffer Alan Schmadtke says Kansas.)

I think this columnist picked Pitt to the Elite 8 just for the storyline.

Memphis is going to get some traction in its first two games, but Pitt’s guards are too good for a young team. The Panthers, by the way, get by Kansas in the second round and take down No. 1 seed Memphis in the Sweet 16.

That is going to set up UCLA’s Ben Howland vs. his old team, Pitt, in the regional final.

UCLA is set-up rather sweetly to get to the Elite 8.

A cursory glance at the KSU site. They have a press release on the game.

I know we all harbor hard memories of that 2002 upset OT loss to Kent St. That team was led by an A. Gates. Not to make anyone nervous, but this 2006 edition also features an A. Gates on the roster.

Looking at some of their numbers, this is a team that goes 9 deep. They averaged around 72-73 points per game but no player averages more than 14.7/game. A little more than 1/3 of their shot attempts are 3s, and they have an eFG% of 50.7. They like to play at a slightly faster tempo than Pitt, but Pitt’s numbers are better on offense and defense.

Kent St. turns the ball over about 13.3 times per game. They don’t seem to rely on a lot of passing, with about a 1-to-1 A/TO ratio. Their biggest player is 6’9″ and most of their offensive production comes from their guards. Two Senior Guards, Jay Youngblood and Deandre Haynes combine for about 28 points per game.