Throughout Jamie Dixon's era as the Pitt head coach, we have heard the fact that Pitt is an unselfish and defensive minded team about a thousand times. That mantra has carried the Panthers to outstanding success over the past decade plus, but during Pitt's first season in the ACC, they are taking playing unselfish, great team basketball to another level. One of the reasons that Dixon's teams have always relied on unselfish play is they never really had a go-to guy at the offensive end that ... Read More
Why private and public schools should compete in different leagues
There have been many programs that dominate its sport around the country in recent history. You have the University of Connecticut Huskies women’s basketball team winning 90 games in a row. The Penn State women’s volleyball team winning five of the last seven national championships and winning 109 straight games. Lastly, you have the University of Alabama football team that has won three national championships in the last five seasons. In Pennsylvania, there is a new kind of dominance that is ... Read More
Scuderi and Orpik challenge Penguins dogma
The Pittsburgh Penguins have long been known as the “Country Club” organization. Along with offensive hockey, comfortability is the standard from the fourth line up to the ownership box. In that context, recent critical comments from Rob Scuderi followed by Brooks Orpik should be seen as a seismic blast across the generally obtuse nature of the organization, which also includes the coaching staff. Scuderi categorized the Penguins lust for offense as “globetrotter” hockey. Orpik correctly cited ... Read More
Pitt stays perfect in ACC with road win over Georgia Tech
With the way he has been playing lately, you had to wonder how No. 22 Pitt would fare on a night where Lamar Patterson didn't have his best scoring game. It turned out to be no problem at all. Talib Zanna scored 22 points, James Robinson added 16 and Pitt pulled away in the second half, remaining perfect in the ACC with a bruising 81-74 victory over Georgia Tech on Tuesday night. With Patterson not shooting well and Durand Johnson out for the season with a torn ACL, Pitt was committed ... Read More
Crosby, Better With Help
Sid the Cardiac Kid, The Next Great One, Captain Canada and Little Magnifique these are just a few names Penguins captain has been called in the nine years he’s been in the NHL and the Steel City. This season Crosby has shown why he’s a four time All Star, two time Ted Lindsay Award Winner and a perennial contender for the Hart Memorial Trophy (NHL MVP), The Maurice “Rocket” Richard trophy and the Art Ross Trophy, given to the league’s top goal scorer and points leader respectively. Through ... Read More
Penguins All-Time Enforcer Squad
An enforcer or a noted "tough guy" is known for his fighting skills. Enforcers or goons are usually fourth line players that are limited in skill who see limited action during a game and usually do not play on special teams. While the Pens have had their share of players who could fight and score: Rick Tocchet, Gary Roberts, Bill Guerin, Kevin Stevens, etc. This list is comprised of players who were acquired for protection and intimidation. These players can also be considered as "energy ... Read More
Pitt cracks Top 25 Rankings for first time this season
For some reason it took them quite a while but Jamie Dixon's Pitt Panthers basketball team has finally cracked the Top 25 rankings. In the latest AP Poll, the Panthers come in ranked No. 22, after going the entire season thus far without sniffing the Top 25. That alone is a bit shocking for a Pitt team who has started the season 15-1 and 3-0 in ACC play. It's hard to think if Pitt were still in the Big East that they would have gone this long without being ranked, however that's something ... Read More
Panther of the Week: Lamar Patterson
The Pittsburgh Panthers have been trucking right along in the ACC, picking up two more conference wins this past season. Durring those wins, senior forward Lamar Patterson came up big. In a 79-59 victory over Maryland, the 6-foot-5 forward scored a game-high 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting including 2-of-2 from the foul line. He also added five rebounds in th win. In an 80-65 victory over Wake Forest, Patterson scored another game-high of 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting including 4-of-7 from the ... Read More
Pitt’s Durand Johnson out for season with torn ACL
The Pitt basketball team suffered a major loss on Sunday when it was announced that redshirt sophomore Durand Johnson would be lost for the season with a torn ACL and meniscus injury. The injury happened late in the second half of Saturday's win against Wake Forest. Johnson drove to the lane and went down quickly, possibly stepping on a Deamon Deacons players’ shoe. While Johnson was down the look on guard Cameron Wright's face gave away that something could be serious. Johnson got up, ... Read More
Pens hold on to defeat Calgary
The Pittsburgh Penguins had issues protecting leads on their trip to western Canada, but we're finally able to do so Saturday night in Calgary. In Vancouver, the Penguins lost a 2-0 lead and were down 4-2 before coming back to win in overtime. On Friday, the Edmonton Oilers completed a two goal deficit to win in overtime with a power play goal by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Chris Kunitz and Matt Niskanen scored as the Penguins narrowly escaped with a 2-1 victory over the struggling ... Read More