| 26 January 2012
It would be tough to describe how much winning last night meant to the team after losing eight straight over 35 days. But it would be tougher to overstate how good Tray Woodall was in his second game back from injury. The junior point guard was simple incredible last night to the tune of 17 points on 6-8 shooting, nine assists and only one turnover.
Woodall was spectaular and really was the catalyst for the win (via the Trib):
How big a difference did a relatively healthy Tray Woodall make in the Panthers' offense?
"Totally different team," Providence coach Ed Cooley said. "Everybody's in their roles, everybody's in their comfort zones."
Everybody except Woodall, that is. He has been anything but comfortable, battling a painful abdominal/groin injury that required a pain-masking injection before the game.
"(Athletic trainer Tony Salesi) has been doing a great job of shooting me up with some drugs," Woodall said, drawing laughter.
With a healthy Woodall, we'd be talking about Pitt as a bubble team for the NCAA Tournament, flirting with .500 in the Big East.
It's not that hard to figure out. What is a football team without its starting quarterback?
Dixon smiled when he was asked if he'd learned any lessons during the losing streak.
"I guess it reaffirmed that point guard is important," he said. "Although I think I knew that beforehand."
That took the pressure off Gibbs who went back to doing Gibbs-like things, like five three-pointers on his way to 22. Even the old Nasir Robinson was back - getting attacked on the court and all - with 14 points and six rebounds.
Obviously, a much needed win and a relief for the team (via the Trib):
Pitt committed only 10 turnovers — it had averaged 16 in the past six games — and its 22 assists were the most since beating VMI on Dec. 6, a span of 11 games. Pitt also went 11 for 20 from 3-point range.
"It's amazing he's back and playing at this level so quick," Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said of Woodall. "He was tremendous, and I thought it spread. I think it will continue to spread as we continue to work."
The only bad point about the game was that the defense continues to be awful. Vincent Council became the latest guard to toast the Panthers, tying his season-high of 26. Pitt cannot give up 76 points every game and expect to win unless they increase their tempo dramatically, something this team doesn't seem to have the depth to do.
But overall the game was good, as most wins are. The atmosphere? Not so much (via the PG):
It was hard to believe it was The Pete.
It was sad, actually. We're talking about a spectacular building in which Pitt has given fans as much entertainment value for their sporting dollars -- if not more -- than the Steelers and Penguins. If you bought a ticket, you almost were guaranteed to see a win in a throbbing environment -- as good as any in college basketball -- and were sure to go home with the crowd noise vibrating in your ears. Coming into the season, its 10th in the arena, Pitt had a 149-12 home record.
So Pitt loses five times in its first 12 games this season at Petersen Events Center and this is the result?
....
It's just further proof of how hard Pitt has it in a pro sports town. The Steelers and Penguins will continue to sell out if they have a few bad years in a row, not that either team is likely to face hard times anytime soon. That isn't the case with Pitt. With football, it's understandable. Pitt hasn't lost fewer than three games in any season since 1981 and has been mediocre in many of those years. It also plays in an off-campus stadium, Heinz Field. But this has to be a lot harder for Pitt officials to swallow with basketball. The Pete is terrific. The basketball program has been terrific in it, the best in the Big East, at least during the regular season.
As I always say - albeit usually about football - "losing has consequences." Pitt football has teetered between a joke and mediocricy for a generation. Plus, selling the casual sports fan on a Wednesday night football game against South Florida will be a challenge nearly everywhere. But basketball? Basketball is a different story.
I do think Cook's point about the Steelers and Penguins is a tad misguided. It wasn't that long ago that the Penguins were forced to declare bankruptcy in those post-Lemieux, pre-Crosby days. As for the Steelers - well, they're on a different level than nearly everyone else in sports.
But as for Pitt, few college basketball programs could sustain the kind of hit that Pitt has taken this season and still fill the arena. But now that it appears that Pitt is finally back to being Pitt, I think we're in for a fun second half of the season. Yes, the first half probably buried Pitt's tournament chances, but if Pitt can continue to play offensively as they did against Providence they'll be a fun team to watch.
I expect big things on Saturday versus Georgetown.
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
