Pitt has its game notes (PDF) for the Sunday match-up. Calling the game on ABC will be Dan Shulman and Len Elmore. That’s a relief. I was afraid Vitale might be brought in after the Saturday night ESPN game or something.
Individual stats from the game notes. Troutman is 25 points shy of 1200 for his career. Depending on how many games Pitt plays in the Big East and NCAA Tournament, he should have a decent shot of reaching 1300. That would place him 15th on the Pitt scoring list, passing Sean Miller, Bobby Martin and Jerome Lane. Carl Krauser, with 372 assists needs only 7 to pass Curtis Aiken and move up to 7th on the assist list at Pitt. Chris Taft is 2 blocks short of 100 for his career. A Pitt win would give Coach Dixon his 50th victory. He’s 49-9.
In the Connecticut Journal Inquirer, a columnist presents his 2004-2005 Big East All-Indispensable first team. The team includes Ryan Gomes, Providence; Jared Dudley, BC; Jeff Green, Georgetown; Marcus Williams, UConn; and
CHEVY TROUTMAN, Pittsburgh: The Panthers’ blue-collar guy underneath, Troutman uses every bit of his four years of experience to get the most out of his talent. Translated, that means the 6-7 forward knows every trick in the book and it makes him one of the toughest opponents in the league. Teammate Carl Krauser makes plenty of big shots for Pittsburgh, but there have been too many games this season in which Troutman simply took over and won the game for the Panthers – the UConn game for one. In league games, Troutman is Pitt’s leading scorer (16.8) and rebounder (7.9). He does all the dirty work that all good teams have to have done.
The great appeal of Troutman, isn’t just how good he is, it’s that you see maximum effort and skill in his game. It’s why he is so widely regarded. He’s leaving everything out there.
The ‘Nova student paper sees the game like this:
The best way to play against this type of team is to start in zone, but have the defense completely deny any entry passes into the post. The Panthers tend to get streaky from behind the arc, but they are much more of a threat when their interior offense is working well. On defense, Tafts shot blocking and rebounding ability will make it tough for our guards to get layups inside, so it is crucial to hit three pointers and make free throws.
This will no doubt be one of the biggest games thus far for the ‘Cats, and with BC looming next Wednesday, there is no time to relax. This is the time of year when great teams step up and prove how good they are.
We believe in our team, and, with two good games against the best of competition, the rest of the nation will believe as well.
Think the students will be in to this game?
