BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: PITTSBURGH @ RUTGERS

December 31, 2008


The crazy week of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights continues on New Year's Eve as RU welcomes third ranked Pittsburgh to the RAC. Rutgers played No. 1 North Carolina on Sunday night and have Connecticut, currently ranked No. 2, on the schedule for Saturday. Rutgers lost the first leg of this three-game stretch 97-75 to UNC.

Pittsburgh has not played since December 21st when they won a tough, physical match-up at Florida State. It was the Panthers first true road game of the season and they got the win despite shooting just 33% from the floor and their floor general Levance Fields going just 1-10. Pitt showed they still had tough defense and strong rebounding, with DeJuan Blair second in the nation in rebounding average, but also Sam Young is a difference maker and his two late baskets keyed Pitt's win.

Here are some of the pre-game previews and stories found on the internet about the game:

Pitt Set to Open Big East Play Today (Tribune-Review)
Rosario, Woodall Enjoy Reunion (Tribune-Review)
Boys Hit the Big Time as Rosario, Woodall Reunite (SNY.tv)
Pitt Opens Big East Play at Rutgers (York Daily Record)

it is still hard for me to believe that Rutgers has lost to St. Bonaventure, Lehigh and Binghmpton at the RAC already this season. They have also struggled mightily against 5-9 Marist (winning by two) and 2-13 Delaware State (winning by 5) on their homecourt which is regarded as one of the tougher venues in the league.

With a roster that has added a pair of freshman all-americans in Mike Rosario and Greg Echenique to a line-up that had veteran upperclassmen in Anthony Farmer, JR Inman and Hamady N'Diaye as well as sophomores Corey Chandler and Mike Coburn who had some success individually as freshmen, this was supposed to be a stronger RU club, but something has yet to jive.

The Panthers come into the game with a 12-0 record, a no. 3 national ranking and a RPI ranking of #1. Pitt has a veteran leader at point guard n Levance Fields as well as a senior star in Sam Young. Also, star-in-the-making DeJuan Blair is a menacing rebounding in the paint.

Not forgotten to the Panthers is a stunning 77-64 home loss to the Scarlet Knights last season, an outcome that is likely to be reminded often to his players by Jamie Dixon. Pitt was without an injured Levance Fields in that contest.

Current college basketball odds show the Panthers as a 14 1/2-point road favorite. Rutgers is likely to play with some renewed energy and maybe even a little extra confidence from their game against UNC last Sunday. While the Pitt defense will likely be tougher and the conference atmosphere will mean a more intense game, RU should keep Pitt from running away with the win. The Panthers also must avoid looking ahead to their date with Georgetown this weekend.


Prediction:
Pittsburgh 67
Rutgers 55

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Big East Journey Begins With Pitt Stop At Rutgers

December 29, 2008



By Zach Smart

Jamie Dixon has never been one to make an ant an elephant. He knew that the pre-season point guard dilemma was nothing to stamp home about, nothing to fret over or dwell on, and nothing that would interfere with lofty, titanic aspirations.

“You know, nobody’s feeling sorry for us,” said a serene Dixon, one of the nation’s premier recruiters who molds young talent at the same rate that Bob Marley would smoke trees and sing epic freedom-themed songs.

At the time, there was a question mark surrounding point guard Levance Fields. Fields aggravated an injury to his left foot and was the most experienced, dynamic staple of the Panther backcourt. When Fields is delivering pin-point passes and sticking momentum-rolling threes, Pittsburgh’s college basketball odds of winning increase.

Dixon was going with walk-on Ryan Tiesi (Travon Woodall was out with a concussion as well) and callow freshman Ashton Gibbs in practice, and it looked like an indicator that the mighty may have fallen.

Not so fast.

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Fields has played in every game this season, leading the undefeated Panthers to their zenith while averaging 10 points and 6.4 assists.

With Sam Young (20.1 points, 5.8 boards) establishing himself as one of the country’s elite scorers and 6-foot-7, 265-pound behemoth DeJaun Blair patrolling the paint to the tune of 14.7 points and 13 rebounds per game, Pitt assures you they’re for real this season.

They’ve eaten up the meat of the nonconference schedule in shark-sized bites, going 12-0 while shellacking opponents by an average of 20 points per game.

Prior to their recent 56-48 triumph over Florida State, no team Pitt faced was able to pull within 12 points of them. Dump off and dump off, the Panthers have vaulted into the top chamber of the nation’s most talented teams and a staple of your March Madness betting pools. They are ranked third and one of four unbeatens, sitting alongside an elite group in UNC, UConn, and Oklahoma.

One player who has come in and forged his imprint is guard Jermaine Dixon. The Baltimore product is the younger brother of NBA guard and University of Maryland standout, Juan Dixon.

For Jermaine, who was raised in the hardscrabble streets during trying times for his family (both of his parents succumbed to AIDS), viewed one as a father figure.
He was essentially raised by his brother and he shoulders that same savvy that Dixon brought to Maryland, when he won coach Gary Williams a national championship over Indiana (that was back when Jarred Jeffries had game) in 2002. Jermaine Dixon has displayed an aptitude for taking cats off the dribble and finishing strong at the cup.
Entering Big East play Dec. 31 at Rutgers, the bullseye is centered on the Panthers’ back.

GAME NOTES

-In order to make it a close game, the Scarlet Knights must clamp down on Young, who loves to snake along the baseline and get free for jumpers.

-Rutgers has clearly been downgraded to the low-rent district of the Big East after dropping games to St. Bonaventure, Lehigh, ad Binghamton—all teams which lack the personnel and essential ingredients to tred water in the Big East Ocean.

-Sunday’s game at top-ranked UNC, one of the four unbeatens in the NCAA, should help prepare the Knights for the athletic and more intimidating, physical brand of ball that Pittsburgh employs.

-The battle on the boards will be a major component of this Big East opener. With boardsmith DeJuan Blair, the Knights will have their hands full. Super-sized bigs Gregory Echenique and Hamady N’Dyiaye, 6-foot-9 and 6-foot-11, respectively, need to become more aggressive and crash the boards. If they want to make it a game, they cannot let the 6-foot-7 Blair outhustle and outstrength them. Echenique has become a presence patrolling the paint, averaging a team-high 9.5 boards per. N’Dyiaye, a Sudan native who’s still sushi-raw and a work-in-progress, has been active on the glass with 7.1 RPG. The task of boxing out Blair and keeping him in check, however, is about as easy as attempting to put toothpaste back in the tube.

-Rutgers has apparently undergone a metamorphosis, with J.R. Inman playing a much lesser role. His minutes have dipped, significantly, while his offensive production has dropped like the flailing economy. With Echenique and N’Dyiye providing a towering tandem that Rutgers hasn’t had in quite some time, the writing’s pretty much on the wall.

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PAPAJOHNS.COM BOWL PREVIEW

December 29, 2008


Two college football teams left for dead at one point earier this season will meet this afternoon in Birmingham (AL) for the Papajohns.com at 3 PM. The match-up of Big East and ACC is a common theme this year's NCAA Bowl games as West Virginia met North Carolina in the Meineke Bowl and Cincinnati will also meet Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. The Big East will look to go 2-0 in these games today after the Mountaineers beat UNC, 31-30, on Saturday.

Rutgers started off the season 1-5 and looked pathetic in doing so. However, six wins in a row later, RU was finishing second in the Big East and 7-5 on the season.

The key in the turnaround was quarterback Mike Teel, who rebounded from a poor start that had many calling for him to be benched. Teel threw 20 touchdowns and for 1,737 yards in the last five games. In their season finale 63-14 win over Louisville, Teel connectec for 7 touchdown passes.

Back in Octoeber, North Carolina State also looked like a team headed nowhere. The Wolfpack were 2-6 and 0-4 in the ACC. They have won four games in a row, including their season finale over Miami, 38-28, to become bowl eligible and get the match-up with the Scarlet Knight.

Current NCAA football odds list the Scarlet Knight at 6 1/2 point favorites in tonight's match-up. Look for Rutgers to continue their season turn-around and come up victorious in the Papajohns.com bowl tonight.

Prediction:

Rutgers 37
NC State 28

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