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Bmac21 — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:03:51 GMT

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Providence Comes to the Pete

Bmac21 — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 17:58:23 GMT

Providence Comes to the Pete

For the first time following the thrilling buzzer-beating win over West Virginia, Pitt will take the court tonight, this time taking on the Friars of Providence College. The Friars (13-10, 4-7 Big East) are struggling, so it doesn't look to be a tough game for Pitt. Still, Providence has a win at UConn under its belt, and Pitt can't afford to lose another easy one at home. The Panthers need to take every win they can get with a very difficult stretch coming up to finish off the Big East season (at Marquette, at ND, vs. Louisville, vs. Cincy, at Syracuse, at WVU, vs. DePaul). This is probably the easiest game Pitt has left on the schedule so they can't afford to lose it. A loss would drop them from the top 25 and knock Pitt out of the race for a bye in the Big East Tourney.

The other big news tonight is the potential return of Levance Fields. He's been practicing, cleared by doctors, and is likely to at least suit up tonight. At best he could see a few minutes of action. That would be fantastic if Fields could get some minutes before the Marquette game, where Pitt will need him a lot more than they will tonight.

Two other excellent previews of the game can be found here and here. I'll be there for the tip at 7:30 (also on FSN Pittsburgh).

Pirates Sign Mientkiewicz to Minor League Deal

Bmac21 — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 23:31:28 GMT

Pirates Sign Mientkiewicz to Minor League Deal

Well, everyone has been complaining that the Pirates front office hasn't done anything of significance this year, and, well, they still haven't. However, Pirates.com does report that the Bucs have signed 1B Doug Mientkiewicz to a minor league contract. Besides being a real pain to spell, he'll simply be another body off the bench, but will probably be a bit rusty considering he spent most of last season rehabbing a fractured wrist from a collision in June. When healthy, he batted a decent .277 with 5 homers, and 24 RBI's. Mientkiewicz was a Gold Glover in 2001, and has a career fielding percentage of 996. which is second all time among all first basemen. He also won a world series with the Red Sox in '04 (and stole the ball from the final out...remember that?). The Pirates also tried to acquire him in '04 but he ended up with the BoSox (and a WS ring) instead. Mientkiewicz and his .271 all time batting average should be a solid back up veteran to LaRoche, and I think he will end up on the 25 man roster opening day. The biggest benefit to this signing is that it helps the Pirates' bench. It's still extremely weak, but right now I'll take what we can get. He's simply a great glove (maybe a good defensive replacement for late innings) with a bat meant for hitting singles.
Pitchers and catchers report onn Thursday...

Weekend Roundup

Bmac21 — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 03:04:00 GMT

Weekend Roundup

The Pens scored two wins in two days, including a big one at home today over the Flyers, vaulting them to first place in the Atlantic Division. Nice work without Crosby, as the Sid's Ankle blog continues to await his return.

Speaking of return from injuries, Levance Fields could possibly be back for the Marquette game on Friday. It's up and down with the news on Fields, some say he won't be back till March, some say he's capable of playing this week. He has been cleared to resume basketball activity, which is great. Hopefully Fields' skills at the point will get Pitt out of their scoring drought.

The 15th ranked Pitt women were spanked by 17th ranked Notre Dame in South Bend today, 66-81.

It was a good college basketball weekend, with Louisville upsetting GTown, Washington upsetting UCLA, and Notre Dame establishing itself as a Big East power. Duquesne won yesterday (over LaSalle) and as usual, Saturday was action-packed with guys going at it on the hardwood. Pitt should only move up one or two spots in tommorow's rankings after its first undefeated week in quite a while (only one win).

I know this is nearly a week old, but the Kevin Hart story is extremely funny. If you don't know, this kid from Nevada made a huge deal about his commitment to either Cal or Oregon, held a big assembly in his HS gym with the two hats and everything, announced he was choosing Cal. Sounds great, right? Thing is, coaches from Cal and Oregon told the media the next day, "uh...we've never heard of this kid." Then he admitted he made it all up. You feel bad for him, but it's entirely his own fault, so, bummer for him.

The Pro Bowl was today. I think the NFC won, but I didn't watch any and don't really care to find out more. Adrian Peterson was MVP. Ben was really practicing hard to prepare for the game though..

Finally, there are two nice Pittsburgh blogs I've recently come across. Hyzdu HQ is a great new Pirates blog and Pitt Panther Prowl is a solid new Pitt blog. The Black (and Gold) Spot has been at it for a while but I've been too lazy to link there. Give them all a look.

R.R. Haunts WVU

Bmac21 — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 21:51:21 GMT

"R.R." Haunts the Mountaineers

The Pete held its collective breath as Ramon let go....

But everyone but this guy was jumping with joy.
I'm not sure which man is despised more in Morgantown right now, Ronald Ramon or Rich Rodriguez. Thanks to a clutch three pointer as time expired last night, the former of those two knocked off the WVU basketball team in a game that the Mountaineers needed to, and should have won. Rodriguez, as we all know, was the man responsible for the colossal letdown against Pitt in a WVU's final game of the regular season. The stakes last night weren't nearly as high, but the finish was as exciting as you'll ever see.

I'll be blunt: the first 35 minutes of the game consisted of terrible basketball. Pitt couldn't shoot and West Virginia simply isn't that good of a team, but was bailed out by impressive three point shooting. Lots of turnovers, fouls, missed shots (WAY too many missed foul shots), guys playing lazy defense getting beat for easy layups, missed layups, etc. It was bad, but Pitt looked like they would manage to get out with a win. Then, the game just got crazy:

With 4:58 to go, Tyrell Biggs missed a foul shot. Blair jumped for the rebound, WVU's Alexander (behind Blair) jumped as well and bumped into Blair, all while Blair's other arm was entangled with Cam Thoroughman. A foul was whistled on Blair, (I don't even think he fouled ANYONE) but Alexander went to the line and made two free-throws. Jamie Dixon claims he was telling the refs the whole time that Thoroughman was fouled, not Alexander, and when a timeout was called just after the free-throws, the refs reviewed the play. In the arena, we hadn't picked up on this, so we were confused as to why the refs were conferencing. Then, the announcer told us the free throws wouldn't count, and the other guy would re-shoot. This was really strange, but we realized it was a good thing so our anger at the refs subsided. When Thoroughman missed the front end of the 1-and-1, WVU had simply lost two points. That would hurt. Pitt would go up 5, but WVU would score the next 8, with the go ahead points coming on a banked in three by Darris Nichols. With a minute left, urgency filled the Pete. The Panthers, down 3, had the ball under the basket, and ran a beautiful play that got 2 points right back. Nobody was open, so Benjamin, the inbounder, lobbed the ball up to Blair, who jumped and tipped the ball right back to Keith, who was wide open for a dunk. I've seen a similar play in which the ball is thrown off the defender's back, but this play seems more reliable. Anyway, up 1, WVU was stuffed on the next posession. Pitt had the ball with 20 seconds and a chance to go ahead, but the ball went into Blair, who chucked the ball into the air right by the hoop, expecting but not getting a foul call. Pitt fouled with 9 seconds left, and WVU went 1-for-2 on the foul shots, leaving them with a 2-point lead with Pitt's ball (sound familiar?). Pitt called timeout, and ran their usual screen up high (worked against Duke, failed at Nova). Nothing developing, Ramon got the ball on the wing, well-covered. Benjamin came open quite a ways behind the arc, and he got the ball. At this point, chances of scoring looked bleak. Pitt looked clueless. Keith drove clumsily, dragging his defender and attracting Ramon's. Benjamin immediately dished it to Ronald, who buried a sweet three. As the ball went flawlessly through the net, the Pete erupted, as players, students, fans (yours truly included) and everyone else went nuts. Levance Fields led the team in mobbing Ramon, as the entire crowd stayed to soak it in and watch the replay. Awesome feeling.

Beating WVU was something that will really help Pitt going into the stretch this season. Although they were favored, WVU is never an easy win, the 'Eers get hot sometimes, and Pitt was of course missing two key starters. The two teams were tied in Big East play at 5-4 at tip-off, so the difference is significant. Pitt is now back in the running for a Big East Tourney bye while WVU has fallen into the middle clump of mediocrity with the likes of Syracuse, Seton Hall, Cincy, Providence, and DePaul. Big win for the Panthers. Pitt has some more time off until they face Providence at home on Tuesday.

Getting Back

Bmac21 — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 23:07:15 GMT

Getting Back

Young's highlight reel play got the Zoo rocking

It took the Panthers a while, but they got the Pete rocking again. A pathetic loss to Rutgers and a sloppy first 30 minutes of basketball against a slumping Villanova team had the place looking nothing like it did weeks ago when GTown was in, but Sam Young, who went through a personal recovery as well, got it all back with one play.

Young, who had been largely blamed for terrible play in the Rutgers loss, had been forcing up awkward shots all night. He managed to score a decent amount of points, but wasn't the exciting, dominant player he had been just a week ago. That would change. After Villanova stormed back to take its first lead of the game with 13:38 to play, Pitt would take charge with a 22-3 run. The highlight was when Young skyrocketed to block a Nova 3-attempt, then grabbed the ball and went streaking down the court. He got airborne and slammed it home, and was fouled on the play. The Pete was "on fire" (according to Hillgrove). Young also hit a 3 late in the game; hopefully that will be a sign of good things to come, since he's been ice cold from deep lately.

Pitt had a bunch of role players play very well last night. Brown had 9, Biggs had 14, Ramon and Blair had 10, and Benjamin had 8. All these guys looked very comfortable on the floor and each made some impressive plays. Pitt is becoming more and more comfortable without Fields, which is evident through the bashing of the Wildcats, 69-57. Villanova beat the Panthers earlier this year but last night looked to be very inferior to Pitt. The Panthers travel to UConn on Saturday.

Panthers Pound Red Storm

Bmac21 — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 02:34:59 GMT

Panthers Pound Red Storm

Blair and the Panthers had no trouble with the Red Storm

Pitt dismantled St. Johns tonight in New York, 81-57. To say that Pitt had an easy time of it would be an understatement. The Panthers grabbed an early lead and never looked back, getting their first road win vs. the Storm since 1995. The entire lineup played well, but Sam Young was the star on Wednesday. He scored 26 total, 18 in the second half, and scored 10 straight points in the middle of the second half. Also in double figures were Ramon with 16 and Blair with 10. D.J. Kennedy, who I mentioned in my write-up before the game, scored 7 points and was 3-9 from the field.
-------------------------------
As a side note, WHYGAVS makes an interesting point today about a player the Pirates signed today. Guess who has accomplished such a strange litany of events during his...illustrious career:

-Started Game 7 in a World Series
-"Threw 10 and 2/3 innings last year and has only had one good year since the turn of the century."
-Agreed to a minor league contract with the Pirates today and was invited to Spring Training

If you guessed Jaret Wright...well, you're right. OK that was bad.
If you thought, "Who the heck is Jaret Wright?" you're probably a bit more on the normal side.

News and Notes--Jan. 22

Bmac21 — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 22:33:00 GMT

News and Notes--Jan. 22

I guess the most important news of the day is Sidney Crosby's injury update. He'll miss 6-8 weeks of action with a high ankle sprain. Bummer, but the Pens are in 1st without him. Here's the remarkable part: As a result of Crosby's injury, an entire website has now been dedicated to one person's body part. Introducing a new blog titled Sid's Ankle. The description? "Keeping a vigil for return of the Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby...and all about the dreaded high ankle sprain." I won't even try to give more info; an entire website should give you all you ever want to know about one ankle.

There were two good college B-ball games on last night, with GTown coming back to edge Syracuse at home and Texas knocking off Oklahoma St. in Stillwater. Pitt now holds a tie for 5th in the Big East, trailing DePaul, Cincy, and WVU (all 4-2) and 5-1 GTown (who really has looked unimpressive in its past 3 games). The Panthers jumped up to 13th in the AP Poll but fell to 17th on the coaches poll after a week in which they upset GTown and were upset at Cincy.

There's lots of new stuff on the Pirates' new Dominican Academy in today's news. It seems awesome and encouraging, but obviously it takes a while for something like that to get results in the big leagues.

River City Revenge

Bmac21 — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 17:00:21 GMT

River City Revenge

Sorry for another super-late recap--I should be back on schedule for a while now.

Pitt was upset at Cincinnati on Saturday, 59-62. I missed nearly the entire game so I can't give a detailed recap, but from what I heard about the game, it seems reminiscent of the Dayton loss. Blair got in early foul trouble, obviously they didn't have two starters, somewhat difficult road environment, and Sam Young and Keith Benjamin suffered minor injuries (they both returned). Still, Pitt played tough and nearly came back to steal a win in a game they clearly didn't deserve. Road wins in the Big East are tough anywhere, so as long as Pitt holds tough at home and takes care of most of its business on the road against lower-tier teams, they should be fine. These losses are going to happen to any team, especially one as banged up as Pitt. They'll have to be better down the stretch later on though, because this isn't the only time an inferior team will hang tough with the Panthers on its home floor.

Cincy winning this game seemed a bit ironic to me since Pitt was able to upset a ranked Bearcat football team at home this year, so Cincy returned the favor on Saturday. The two schools have taken to naming the annual football matchup the "River City Rivalry" with trophy below.

Pitt football has won this uh..coveted trophy three years straight.

At least Pitt wasn't alone in getting upset on Saturday, as No. 1 UNC went down at home to Maryland. (Their fans didn't exactly take it well..) 3 other teams ahead of Pitt also went down (UCLA, Texas A.M., and Ole Miss). Marquette (13th) also lost to UConn on Sunday. The new rankings come out later today. Pitt faces St. Johns on the road on Wednesday.

The two conference championship game were pretty good yesterday. San Diego gave the mighty Patriots a pretty good run but in the end 4 field goals amount to less than 3 touchdowns. The most surprising part of the game in my mind was that Brady threw 3 picks. Later, in sub-zero temperatures, the Packers lost at home to the upstart Giants. The G-men nearly blew it by missing a short FG as time expired but Favre's magical season ran out, as he threw a pick on the 3rd play of overtime, setting up another Giant FG that this time was successful. So, the Giants-Pats in the Super Bowl in 2 weeks. Keep in mind NY gave NE a good game in week 17, plus they are on fire and the Pats appear to be slumping. I'd be shocked if New England lost though, but I sure do hope it happens. Vote in the poll to proclaim your prediction for the big game in Phoenix.

BIG Monday (Even though it's Wednesday)

Bmac21 — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 21:34:25 GMT

BIG Monday (Even though it's Wednesday)

Blair outplayed the Hoyas on Monday

First, I want to apologize for not getting this post up sooner. The Pitt win over Georgetown on Monday night was enormous and obviously something I really wanted to write about, but I went to the game and have been busy since then until now. So..here goes:

You all know the basics by now. Pitt beat Georgetown at the Pete on Monday, 69-60. Benjamin and Ramon had 18 each. Blair had 15 and dominated Roy Hibbert (who is 7 inches taller). The Panthers played a phenomenal game and are once again contenders in the Big East. I don't think anyone still thinks they won't manage to make the NCAA Tourney.

I could go on, but there's been plenty of coverage in the past few days. I'd simply be repeating the same things over and over again (DeJuan Blair is a beast, it's great to see Ramon on track, Jamie Dixon is brilliant, we'd be unbelievable with Cook/Fields, Georgetown didn't look good) and it's all true. But having been at the game first-hand and not being able to put out a basic recap soon after the game, I just want to focus on one major thing that struck me Monday night.

The atmosphere at the Petersen Events Center was unbelievable on Monday. The place was rocking like I have never seen it before, and I have seen it rock before. I used to go to only a few games a year, and one would always be the biggest home game of the season, like UConn or Syracuse. Since I didn't get to go that much, those games seemed almost magical. The place was fired up, the team played great, and the results were big wins. Now that I've been to more than half the games the past few years, the Pete seems a bit different. Not to say that I enjoy going to Pitt games any less than I used to, but the atmosphere doesn't seem like it used to. The fans/Zoo are quieter, more empty seats, and you can just tell fans are bored when the game isn't close and that fans are angry when Pitt doesn't crush a team. Going into the GTown game on Monday, I expected people to be pumped up, but I fully thought fans would generally act the same way.

Suffice it to say I was pleasantly surprised by what I got on Monday. I didn't get to the game super-early, but I was there about 10 minutes before tip. Obviously the Zoo was packed. (Later I would get word the Zoo was packed 2 hours or more before the game. I'll guarantee that hasn't happened yet this year.) What's more, the seats were almost filled up. I'm sure on TV they looked kind of empty. Well, just about every game I go to the place is deserted until starting lineups. There are tons of blue seats by tip-off. Not Monday. People actually got there on time and got their butts in their seats, for once. It was nice to see that and a big crowd always helps the place feel electric. All of a sudden, music cranked and a new video display came up, focusing on how Pitt was 90-8 all-time at the Pete. That got the crowd (mostly the Zoo) rocking, and for a minute the video boards just displayed, "This is our house! -- 90-8 at the Pete!" The players finished warm-ups since it was time for the national anthem. Blair did his pull-up on the rim that drew applause from the crowd. The band struck up the national anthem, and the whole arena softly sung along. That creates a cool, almost spooky effect, and I've never been to another place where fans sing the anthem. The players, arms interlocked (something the Zoo now mimics), slowly walked toward Georgetown's players. Blair sought out Hibbert but Hibbert turned and headed to his bench. The GTown lineup was announced, each player's name followed by the Zoo yelling, "Sucks!" and the coach followed by, "He sucks, too!" Lights go off, a siren blares, and Bill Hillgrove grabs the mike. The Zoo bounces and the fans stand and cheer. This is an awesome moment every game but Monday was extra special. As each player came out, a reserve gave them a chest bump or some kind of ridiculous, emphatic high-five. Then music came on at earsplitting volume, with the same, "This is our house" deal, continuing until tip-off. As I first sat down I got a text from someone sitting on the other side of the court saying, "This is nuts wow what an environment!" I was skeptical for a moment but at this point we were in agreement.

As soon as Blair dumped an awkward shot in past Hibbert the place exploded. You would have thought Pitt had just won the game. In fact, they had. Pitt never trailed or was even tied after the game's first basket. Every possession was huge, every three pointer meant 12,000 deep breaths, and every whistle was either worth screaming for joy or in disgust. There must have been at least 5 stretches where Pitt went on a slight run, followed up by a key play like Sam's slam, a Keith or Ronald three, or a Blair and-one, promptly followed by a Hoya timeout. These are the moments where we learn why we love being sports fans, when we jump up and down, clap until our hands hurt, and high five and hug people nearby. Most Pitt Bball games that happens once or twice. This Gtown game, it felt like that happened every five minutes. It was an unbelievable experience for anyone in the building, and even people who watched it on TV could tell it was LOUD. The Zoo bounced every Hoya possession. Georgetown kept it close enough to keep us enthralled and worried, enough so that every Pitt basket was huge. After the game, we marveled in amazement. I've been to bigger games. I've been to closer games. I've been to unbelievable games (vs. ND a few years ago when Chris Quinn scored 30+....ND came back from 9 down in 1 minute but Pitt won in 2 overtimes.) Still, that was the best atmosphere I've ever been a part of for a Pitt basketball game.

If it wasn't enough that Pitt fans got to witness all that, one more person of interest did, too. His name is Terelle Pryor. You might have heard of him. Now, before you get too excited, Pryor has already claimed he doesn't want to go to Pitt, coach Wannstedt wasn't there with him, and people think he just tried to convince Pitt it still had a chance just to get some tickets. Still, if he thought anything at all similar to what I just wrote above, he has to be thinking. That was an awesome environment and who wouldn't want to be a part of it? Pryor wouldn't just be part of it, he would be the star in the middle. To boot, the Zoo chanted his name several times, and eventually some kids with a sign made their way over to Pryor's seats. They stuck the sign in his face, then displayed it to the crowd. It read: Ditka--check, Marino--check, Dorsett--check, Pryor--empty box. The place went nuts and a "We want Pryor" chant got started. Already-committed recruit Cam Saddler tapped Pryor's head, as if to say, "Come on, dude! It's obvious! Come to Pitt!" I think Pitt fans can at least say there is still some hope for Pryor.

I don't think it was any coincidence that Pitt played a great game against a team that was supposed to be significantly better than them. I'll say this, take a look at Pitt's schedule and what happened on Monday night. If the Pete is anything like it was on Monday, Pitt will go undefeated at home. As the scoreboard immediately flashed in giant characters as soon as the clock hit 0.0:
91-8.
This is our House.