Idle thought of a negative mind: on what scale of devastation would an upset by USF tonight hit? At the very least, it would make that upset by USF back in 2002(?) look minor.

There is a target on Pitt, Louisville is looking forward to it. So are the Bulls.

“One is unique,” University of South Florida coach Stan Heath said. “The other [rankings] are impressive, don’t get me wrong. No. 1 has a little more uniqueness to it.”
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A USF victory against No. 1 would be “a tremendous step forward, just a huge accomplishment, something that would resonate nationally and even throughout our community,” Heath said. “It’s a tall order for us, but a great opportunity. Why not embrace it?”

USF has not defeated a team ranked higher than No. 15 – and that was 17 years ago at No. 15 Tulane – but sophomore guard Dominique Jones is looking forward to the challenge.

“It’s really exciting, everybody is kind of pumped up for it,” Jones said. “I think some people are kind of nervous, but that’s only normal. For me, I think it’s an opportunity.”

The emphasis on the Bulls is their guards. Why? Because Gransberry graduated and they don’t have a replacement.

Jones, a 6-foot-4 sophomore who ranks ninth in the Big East in scoring, has four 30-point games in his brief career. Last season, he became the first Big East freshman to have back-to-back 30-point games since Allen Iverson 13 years ago. Jones rarely leaves the floor, averaging a Big East-leading 36.4 minutes per game.

But Jones and Verdejo aren’t consistent.

Jones was 0 for 12 from the field against Wright State and 1 for 10 against Louisville. But he made 7 3-pointers in a 36-point outburst against Iona and hit 5 3-pointers against DePaul.

Verdejo went 0 for 10 from behind the arc as part of a 3-for-17 disaster against Syracuse, but he shot 9 of 15 against DePaul.

“They are streaky,” Dixon said.

South Florida coach Stan Heath said Pitt’s three top scorers — Sam Young, DeJuan Blair and Levance Fields — can’t be stopped.

“You have to pick your poison,” he said. “You’re not going to stop them, but we have to slow them down. We can’t let them go nuts on us. No one can stop them.”

There are ties between Sam Young and a couple USF players.

Chris Howard and Sam Young won two state championships together in high school, and it’s a rare day that the USF point guard doesn’t trade phone calls or motivational text messages with Pittsburgh’s athletic forward.

“That’s my best friend, like a brother to me,” Howard said. “We talk every day, communicate maybe four or five times a day.”

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When Howard and Young were seniors at Friendly, USF F Gus Gilchrist was a freshman. He remembers the work ethic Young showed in high school.

“Sam was the hardest worker I’ve ever seen,” said Gilchrist, who saw Young at open gyms when he was at Maryland last summer. “Sam motivated me when I was younger, seeing a senior win back-to-back championships. Their hard work was instilled in me.”

A win tonight and Coach Jamie Dixon passes Paul Evans to move to third on Pitt’s all-time wins list. Coach Dixon has done a lot in a short time.

For the fourth time in his six seasons as head coach, Jamie Dixon has taken the Panthers into January without losing. If No. 1 Pitt beats South Florida tonight, this team will own the third-best start in school history.

Amazingly, of the top 10 starts to a season in the 101 years of Pitt basketball, Dixon has coached six of those teams. Dixon’s first team in 2003-04 started the season 18-0 before losing at Connecticut. The 1927-28 team finished the season a perfect 21-0 and will forever own, or at the very least share, the best start.

“We have the best record in the Big East over the last eight years,” Dixon said. “It’s not even close. And we’ve had the best record overall. You’re going to win a few games in all of the months of the calendar that we play in.”

UPDATE ON THE GAME: It will tip-off at least 10 minutes late on ESPNU. USF had trouble reaching the Pete. ESPNU showed them filing into their lockerroom live at 6:40pm.