You know, these teams are apparently alike. You might here something about that during the game today. Even similar home court advantages. That theme continues.
The Badgers, like the Panthers, are patient, disciplined and deliberate on offense and rarely take a bad shot. They play tough, hard-nosed defense and are big and physical.
And the two teams’ statistics are similar, too. Pitt is beating its opponents by an average of 15.4 points; Wisconsin by 15.9. The Panthers also generally outrebound their opponents and have an excellent assist-to-turnover ratio as do the Badgers.
The two teams have also played 3 common opponents.
Carter was asked to assess No. 2 Pittsburgh (10-0) and No. 7 Wisconsin (10-1) because the Seminoles lost to both teams earlier this year. The Panthers beat Florida State 88-66 in Pittsburgh on November 24 and Wisconsin beat Florida State 81-66 in an ACC/Big Ten Challenge game at the Kohl Center on Nov. 28.
“I think Pitt has players 1 through 5 who can score when called upon to score. That’s probably the biggest difference between those two basketball teams,” said Carter, who is a former assistant at Northwestern under Bill Foster and the late Ricky Byrdsong. “When we played Pitt they were just phenomenal. They looked like a pro team that night.”
Delaware State’s assistant Arthur Tyson likes Wisconsin. Auburn Head Coach Jeff Lebo thinks the Wisconsin home court is a big edge, but really likes Aaron Gray.
“It’s going to be a great college basketball game,” Lebo said. “They’re both very good, both well-coached. For Wisconsin, playing at home will be a big thing so they’ll have a great crowd. Rebounding is going to be the key in this game. Both teams are physical.”
…
“He’s [Gray] got great hands. I think right now he is playing with a great amount of confidence,” Lebo said. “He’s shooting the ball. He’s passing it much better because he’s learned to play with double teams. I think his game is well-rounded. He’s very efficient.”
In the three common foes Pitt beat them on average, 76.3-60.7 and Wisconsin was 74-60.3.
The lines are finally being released on this game and Wisconisn is given a 5 point edge. The trends, though, look nicer for Pitt.
