Basketball: Pitt and WVU meet in what could be last Backyard Brawl

After a court settlement announcing that West Virginia will join the Big 12 in July, Pitt and… After a court settlement announcing that West Virginia will join the Big 12 in July, Pitt and West Virginia’s men’s basketball teams will fight for the final time as Big East conference rivals in a regular-season Backyard Brawl.

The rivalry’s latest battle will take place Thursday night in the Petersen Events Center, where Pitt is 7-1 all-time against West Virginia.

However, the Panthers are once again on a losing streak after dropping back-to-back games against South Florida and Seton Hall. Pitt is looking to regain the momentum needed for another hot run.

“It is just execution,” Nasir Robinson said on what is necessary to find success. “Just the little things that we were doing on our winning streak, we gotta get back to those things.”

Robinson is looking forward to playing the Mountaineers at home in a loud environment. In a physical game with WVU, any advantage helps. On Jan. 30, the Panthers claimed victory over the Mountaineers 72-66 in Morgantown.

“It’s another big game,” head coach Jamie Dixon said. “Just like the rest of our games.” Dixon is 12-6 all-time against WVU.

West Virginia is also on a two-game losing streak after getting edged out by Louisville and Notre Dame. The Mountaineers have now fallen to 6-7 in the conference and will need a victory in Pittsburgh to climb back to .500.

Forward Kevin Jones will continue to lead his Mountaineers as he has all season. The Big East leader in points per game (20.2) and rebounds per game (11.2) appears to be a leading candidate for Big East Player of the Year. Robinson describes Jones’ play as tough, active and strong.

“We need to force him to take tough shots,” Robinson said of Jones, who scored 21 points and grabbed 13 boards in the last meeting against Pitt.

The bigger bodied lineup that West Virginia presents may result in Dixon using more big men like Dante Taylor and Talib Zanna throughout the game. Pitt was prepared to play this defense in the last meeting, but it was not needed after the offense took control.

Travon Woodall will once again be the key to Pittsburgh’s game. Woodall scored a game-high 24 points in the last meeting. Dixon believes the Mountaineers will try new defensive strategies to block Woodall’s recent run of creating opportunities for the Pitt offense.

J.J. Moore commented that the game is a must-win to rebuild Pitt’s confidence. Now at 4-9 in the conference, Pitt has a chance to close out the regular season strong and earn a higher Big East tournament seed.

“We’ve gotta win a lot of games, no question about it,” Dixon said.

Thursday night’s game will have a lot of impact on the present standings, but raises questions about what is in store for the future of the Backyard Brawl.

“It’s a good rivalry,” Moore said. “Hopefully we can get them back.”