The Big East Tournament is next week. For the last time.
Don’t care who has the name. Don’t care if it’s still at MSG. It won’t be the Big East Tournament any longer.
Pitt was picked for 6th in the Big East while Syracuse and ND were picked for 2d and 3d respectively.
Pitt is sitting in a 3-way tie for 4th in the Big East with Notre Dame and Syracuse.
All three teams play on Saturday on the road — and very conveniently arranged for viewing pleasure.
Syracuse at Georgetown at Noon (ESPN)
Pitt at DePaul at 2pm (ESPN Regional/Big East syndication)
Notre Dame at Louisville (CBS)
Slight discrepancy in the foes ND and Cuse face compared to Pitt’s opponent. It is always possible DePaul pulls the upset. And there’s always a bit of concern for Pitt when they get a full week off. Still, I’m going to assume a Pitt win on Saturday to shorten and simplify scenarios.
If Pitt wins and the other two lose, Pitt finishes 4th without any tie-breakers. They would be the #4 seed in the BET.
If Pitt wins, Syracuse wins and ND loses, Pitt ties with Cuse for 4th, but is the #4 seed in the BET. Pitt beat Syracuse head-to-head.
If Pitt wins, Syracuse loses and ND wins, Pitt ties with ND for 4th, but falls to the #5 seed in the BET. ND beat Pitt head-to-head.
If all three win (or lose), Pitt will be seeded 4th in the BET because of that Georgetown win. The tie-breaker formula involves how the tied teams did against the highest finisher. ND lost to Georgetown. Syracuse, at best, is 1-1. Pitt with a 1-0 record gets it over the Orange.
Now the other question that gets asked is: Does Pitt want the double-bye?
Since 2009, the Big East has awarded the top four teams in the league standings a free pass to the quarterfinal round of the tournament while the rest of the teams begin play Tuesday and Wednesday. Pitt has earned the double bye three times and lost its first game on all three occasions.
The Panthers are not alone. In 16 games, teams with the double bye are 9-7.
Obviously Pitt has skewed the numbers. Flip them to wins and the double-bye debate in the BET would be a dismissed.
It really seems that there is no avoiding the dobule-bye. I have a hard time seeing Louisville losing this one at home. Not on their senior day.
The question should be: How does Pitt get itself ready for a double-bye?
They’ll lose one and win one in a given week and it hardly budges them down the rankings.
Even worse than Syracuse, losing several several times before they were finally dropped out of the Top 10.
These media people and coaches have their favorites and be damned will anything change their minds (like losing to unranked teams). You see they don’t like looking foolish.
Another example was Miami, they weren’t ranked for months and months, and then they HAD to put them in the Top 20 since they were in 1rst place in the ACC at 8-0 or something. And then they zoomed them up to the Top 5 in like a week. lol
They have 3 of the last 4 games now, with 2 of those to weak teams, we’ll see how far they drop from #6. Probably not far.
Also it will be interesting to see how far Georgetown(currently #5) drops since losing handily to unranked Villimanilli.
We on the other hand seem to be treated far differently by the pollsters (especially USA/ESPN), so we better win against DePaul for I think they’ll have no problem just dropping us right out if we lose.
What seed Pitt gets is going to be really interesting. RPI is pretty high but other things are pretty low. I could see Pitt being as high as a 3 and as low as a 6. No teams in the NCAA scare me. Pitt could beat anyone in the country this year. It’s not like a UNC of Florida team of a past is out there that is loaded and just dominant.
Also, about strength and conditioning weren’t some people worried about the hire of the strength coach because he was inexperienced?
But who knows what the NCAA will do.
There were some concerns about the strength and conditioning coach at the beginning. However it wasn’t inexperience, he had been at NC State for 5 years prior. If my memory serves, there were thought at the beginning that the conditioning he did for BC before he went to NCState was sub par as it focused on flexibility above strength at points.
Cause he us a #5 seed in the West Bracket. wtf
And get this we would play the 12 seed, who would be the winner of Kentucky/LaSalle. That is quite a 12 seed.
The 12 seeds in the other regions are Belmont,
Middle Tennessee State and Akron.
Not exactly on par with the 12 seed they have penciled in for us.
We usually get screwed in these brackets, I’m going to expect this year will be no different
🙁
“This isn’t me not liking Pittsburgh. The Panthers have unique depth, are elite on the glass and pass the ball beautifully on the interior.
This is just me loving Belmont.
The Bruins have one of the best backcourts in America in Ian Clark and Kerron Johnson, are dangerously efficient on offense, force a lot of turnovers on defense and have gaudy experience. No one wants to play them.”
Top 4 are Kansas, GTown, Miami and Oklahoma State.
We can’t beat them in the slow down half court game.
As for the conspiracy by the BE refs….anyone here not remember the 13-9 game? Anyone care to argue that that game wasn’t fixed (unsuccessfully) by the refs?
I agree with Wardapalooza above, if Pitt plays ND I will probably avoid watching the game also. That tool Brey has Dixon’s number.
Besides it’s Happy Hour. 🙂
And I think most of us anymore don’t stress too much over our athletic teams.
Rant…..yes…..stress…no
This is all fun !!
If Pitt can win the BE tournament, that should shoot us up to a #3 seed.
I would like to see a Pitt vs. Cuse final.
Since we two started the beginning of the end for the BE, we two should end it in style.
And of course Pitt beats Cuse again, and Boeheim again repeats >…..Pitt is the best team….by far that we’ve played.
Let’s Go Pitt !!!
Beat the Blue Demons !!!
VeV !!!
So enjoy the evening/nite my Pitt brethren.
HTP !
Game not on TV here.
@Scott 78 – thanks. That’s what I figured but that’s no excuse for blacking it out on ESPN#3
They could have gone with Pan American conference. Or Continental Conference. Or they could have gone with The Remainders.
Because they clinched a share of the conference title.
Respect is like virginity. You lose it and it is gone forever.
No respect for Creen or IU.
Bring on IU.
Creen’s team can cut down nets after we beat them too!
Comment by Pitt Dad 03.08.13 @ 10:00 pm
Tape delayed because Mets exhibition game on at 1. On ESPN3 though.
The ACC should invite UCONN and Cinci. UCONN brings another great Basketball tradition, solidifies New England and New York for TV ratings. Up and coming football program. BC needs to get off their high horse and add a natural rival.
Cinci adds Ohio to the fold, fertile football recruiting area, more TV’s, solid Basketball tradition and up and coming in Football. Regional rival for Louisville and Pittsburgh. River City trophy baby. Thorn in the side of Ohio State monopoly.
This would help if ACC gets raided again. May make ND nervous enough to finally get off the pot. The musical chairs are disappearing. Less non-com games available.
UC would be a great fit and in BIG Ten country.
How is this for a slight? OSU will hold its spring game at Paul Brown stadium.
How would we feel if Sandusky State College held theirs at Heinz.
Conference realignment is not for the timid!
Anyway, two kids from WPA on Zips. Kid from Moon and center from McKeesport.
They are nice players both.
But they would never play for Pitt…never see the floor.
These are the players Duquesne needs to recruit and get. Not us.
(11)Marquette (-8) over (70)St. John’s
(105)Lehigh (+1) over (173)Lafayette
(143)Mount St. Mary’s (+9) over (113)Robert Morris
(46)Cincinnati (-12.5) over (128)South Florida
(240)Fordham (+14.5) over (111)St. Bonaventure
(218)Duquesne (+15) over (80)Richmond
(127)Delaware (-9) over (321)Hofstra
Go figure. I’m in the office anyway but it would have been nice to have the ESPN3 stream. I’m sure I can find some other free website that has it.
I would rather they both go the way of Duquesne BB and fade off into oblivion. We recruit against these teams….same with Villanova…G’Town….St. John’s etc. and anyone else along the East Coast.
ATDee.net doesn’t have it listed.
Heinz Field didn’t get us into the ACC.
They did recruit him and he was wise to go to Akron. The Subday PG says pro scouts are looking, but only as a body in camp.
He is very slender and plays a finesse game. Pretty 10 ft hook, but doesn’t have the body or the “nasty” to play low.
In the Kent game they needed him to get boards but he was nowhere to be found. Just not a physical guy and this was his senior year.
Good he went to Akron where he could play. Europe? Maybe. I hope so. He made the right choice so that tells me he uses good judgment.
link to usatoday.com
7 are leaving, which means hopefully ND will join us in the ACC next year as well