Hell of a damning piece on Ben Howland and the turmoil at UCLA. No real scandal. No recruiting violations. Nothing really that I would consider outrageous behavior by the players — outside of Reeves Nelson — to suggest an institutional issue. And the defense from former players is underway. Nonetheless, it is a piece that makes Ben Howland look really, really bad. A piece that those UCLA fans who want Howland out are citing as evidence.
The first thing to note from a Pitt perspective, none of this touches Pitt. The issues surrounding UCLA and Howland are only for the last few years. It is pointed out that there were no problems at UCLA in the first several years under Howland. It has only been recently. What it suggests more than anything else is that Howland was too hands-off about what the players were doing, expecting them to all be self-starters who kept things in check. Go figure, not all kids — especially high-major talent — might be less disciplined.
The group he had at first was much like what he had at Pitt.
That was needed. It doesn’t change the frustration and disappointment of the season. It doesn’t erase the problems this team still has — especially handling the press and turnovers. It was however a welcome game. A game that — especially in the second half — actually put smiles on the faces of the players and fans.
Hearing the chants for senior walk-on Nick Rivers at the end of the game, and then getting to the free throw line was just icing. As much disruption to the season. As many questions there were about the chemistry and cohesiveness of the team from this season, you could still see the affection they have for one another, Pitt and the fans.
The victory was career No. 100 for Gibbs and Robinson. Even though the Panthers finished the season a pedestrian 11-7 in their home building, they had the thrill of leaving the Petersen Events Center court winners one final time.
“Definitely a lot of memories,” Gibbs said. “We had a lot of great teams. Even though this was a tough year, there are some good memories. It starts with the fans. That’s one of the reasons I came to the University of Pittsburgh — the city atmosphere. This is a big sports city. The fans support the Pitt Panthers. I give credit to the Oakland Zoo and all the fans out there. It’s one of the reasons we’ve been so good for so long.”
Gibbs had reason to smile — as much out of relief as anything.
