After suffering their first loss of the season against Cincinnati, Pitt’s Lamar Patterson made sure it wouldn’t be two in a row for the Panthers. Patterson scored a career-high 30 points, carrying the Panthers on his back for most of the afternoon as Pitt improved to 11-1 on the season with a 73-56 victory over Cal Poly Saturday afternoon at the Petersen Events Center. “Good performance I thought,” said Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon. “We have to get better obviously, but it was nice to see ... Read More
Is Pitt ready for the ACC?
Monday night's loss to Cincinnati should have served as a wakeup call to Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon. It also should serve as a reminder of why the Panthers need to do a better job with their out of conference schedule. Don't get me wrong, there has been plenty to like about Pitt's first 10 wins of the season. There's also no shame in losing to a team like Cincinnati, although the Bearcats could be a bubble team at best in this year's NCAA Tournament field. On a night where the Panthers ... Read More
Panthers scratch and claw their way to victory over Penn State
It wasn't as easy as Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon may have liked, but eventually the size and depth of the Panthers wore down visiting Penn State as Pitt improved to 8-0 on the season with a 78-69 victory in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. But the Panthers had their hands full with the Nittany Lions all night long. Penn State took a 30-28 lead at the half thanks to the fact that the Panthers could not buy a bucket. "Not a good first half," said Dixon. "I spent halftime emphasizing the amount ... Read More
Pitt’s Cameron Wright poised for breakout season
One of the big keys to success coming into the season for Jamie Dixon's Pitt Panthers was whether or not junior guard Cameron Wright could handle the increased role as a starter. After averaging only 3.3 points per game off the Panthers bench during the first two years of his career, Wright has done his best to answer any questions about whether or not he was up to the challenge as the Panthers are off to a 7-0 start to the season. Coming off the best game of his career in which Wright scored ... Read More
Is this Jamie Dixon’s best shooting team ever?
One thing has always been missing from Jamie Dixon's Pitt basketball teams in the past and that's been the ability to shoot the ball consistently from the perimeter. Sure there have been some snipers that have wore a Panthers uniform in the past, but never has Dixon had a team that has the potential to be as lethal as this Pitt team can be from the outside. Through six games, all wins, Pitt is shooting the three ball at a 40.7 percent clip (44-for-108). That number also includes a program ... Read More
Pitt’s Derrick Randall out to prove a point
Sometimes a player just needs an opportunity. After spending two seasons sitting on the end of the bench at Rutgers, big man Derrick Randall transferred to Pitt in the offseason where it looks like he will get the opportunity he has been searching for. When a team loses five of their top eight players in terms of minutes played, there are going to be opportunities for players such as Randall to impress the coaching staff This year there is no Steven Adams. There's also no Tray Woodall ... Read More
Will Jamie Dixon shrink rotation in 2014?
One of the strengths of the 2012-13 Pitt Panthers basketball team was the extraordinary depth that Panthers' head coach Jamie Dixon had at his disposal as Pitt was one of the rare teams in the country that could run 10 competent bodies out on a nightly basis. That's something that will likely change this season. Gone form that deep 2013 team are five players who were among the top eight Panthers in terms of minutes played. Steven Adams is in the NBA. Tray Woodall and Dante Taylor have ... Read More
Panthers must cut back on the fouls to contend in ACC
As Jamie Dixon’s Pitt Panthers basketball team prepares to begin its inaugural ACC season, the anthers could be in for quite the transition. For the Panthers to find themselves among the ACC’s best teams at seasons end, they have to get back to doing one thing- playing great defense. On the surface, Pitt’s defense was a typical good Panthers defense last season as they allowed only 0.94 points allowed per possession, which was good for third in the Big East Conference. However if you ... Read More
Pitt releases 2013-14 basketball schedule
Will all the attention is being paid to the Pitt Panthers football team as they prepare to begin their first season of ACC play, before you know it Jamie Dixon and the Pitt basketball team will be back in action. With that being said, the Panthers released their entire 2013-14 schedule on Thursday. The schedule features home contests against ACC foes in Duke, Syracuse and Penn State and currently features 16 games on national television, a number that could grow as the season inches ... Read More
Pitt Panthers Notebook: Devin Street takes on leadership role and more
With it being the slowest time of year in terms of Pitt athletics- that time of year before summer camp for the football team and before Jamie Dixon’s basketball team even thinks of getting started- now is a great time to unveil my weekly Pitt Panthers notebook, recapping the week in Pitt athletics. With that being said, let's not waste any time and look at Pitt wide receiver Devin Street, who could be taking on a new leadership role with the team this season. One problem with having Tino ... Read More