Now that all football is done, the 6pm games on ESPN begin.

It’s a Coaches Versus Cancer day, so expect to see Jamie Dixon and Tim Welsh in sneakers.

If you are listening to the radio, be sure to leave a comment on how Hillgrove and Groat do when they have to say Weyinmi Efejuku.

6:12: Just got over here as the Hofstra game just went final. Missed the first 14 points of the game.

6:16: Oh, Gray will abuse Hill if the Friars leave it one-on-one.

6:21: 17-14 Pitt, 12:08. Sam Young not exactly looking that sharp early. Inconsistency is a killer for him.

6:24: 18-17 Providence, 10:46. Pitt slipping into Providence’s game by rushing some shots. Need to control the tempo.

6:42: 30-30 Providence, 3:03. Young recovered from missing some shots, a couple turnovers to notch 6 points. Cook has 7 points.

Providence was getting some tremendous penetration from Curry. This is probably the second best I’ve seen the Friars play on the road (the best was against UConn).

Is anyone else feeling a mixture of amusement and annoyance when they keep referring to rivalry week, with the implications that Pitt-Prov is a rivalry game?

6:56: Pitt trailing 34-33. Gray only played 8 minutes in the half with 2 fouls. Pitt’s shots were a mix of some rushed shots and others that just didn’t go. Graves and Ramon were 0-5 and very little. The team looks uncomfortable and unsettled.
Herbert Hill has been able to back down on the Pitt defense and Sharaud Curry has been very creative. The other players for the Friars haven’t shot that well.

Lots of time, and no reason to panic. Mild frustration is permitted.

7:23: Pitt leads 47-43, 13:11 left. Pitt has gone on an 11-1 run. Kendall has taken two charges in this game.

Just some less than smart play from Pitt too often, while Providence — and I can’t stress this enough — is playing one of their best games. They are, though, one of the bad FT shooting teams in the BE.

Pitt’s guards are not having a good game. Graves, Ramon and even Fields are struggling. Not just shooting, but spacing and ball movement overall.

7:38: Pitt leads 57-52. If Gray could just finish — at least two easy ones just rolled off the rim — he’d be closer to 30.

7:47: Graves grabs back the turnover on the errant pass, and wow! 63-59, and after the TV TO, a chance for one more.

7:59: Here’s a statement you don’t get to read everyday. Pitt has the advantage at the free throw line against Providence.

8:07: Whoever the color guy was that simply said “Fatigue” when Curry missed a FT was dead-on. Curry’s played the entire game. Can’t believe how much Gray struggles at the line, though, down the stretch.

8:10: Pitt wins, 74-68. It wasn’t pretty. It was a less then impressive win. Still that’s okay. Pitt was probably due for a bad game. The timing was important. Better to struggle in this game rather than the prior or even the next two.