Men’s Basketball: Season ticket holders dine with Panthers

When Bernadette Spinella checked her cell phone and saw that she had three missed calls from the… When Bernadette Spinella checked her cell phone and saw that she had three missed calls from the University of Pittsburgh, she figured the school was in search of a donation and that someone would call back.

The University did call back, but it wasn’t to ask for money.

Spinella was one of 16 randomly selected men’s basketball season-ticket holders chosen to attend a dinner at the University Club on Sunday night. There, fans had the opportunity to meet and interact with the players.

The evening culminated with the players presenting fans with their season tickets for the upcoming season. The attendees were selected from a computerized lottery.

“It wasn’t exactly the Pennsylvania Lottery, but that’s kind of how they got picked,” Pitt Athletic Director Steve Pederson said. “I talked to a woman who sits in the upper deck, and she said, ‘This is better than the Pennsylvania lottery!’”

Spinella, who holds two degrees from Pitt, said she has watched Pitt basketball since 1970 and now attends every home game.

“I was thrilled to get the phone call that I was randomly selected,” Spinella said. “I could not believe it. At first I thought, ‘How much is the dinner?… How did I get selected?’”

During the event, the players and fans sat together, discussing topics ranging from school to their fondest Pitt basketball memories while they ate.

“They asked how practice was going, but I also asked a lot of questions to them,” senior guard Nick Rivers said. “I asked who their favorite Pitt player of all time was. One gentleman said Billy Knight, who has his jersey retired. One story was about the Jerome Lane dunk. The gentleman said it was the loudest the gym has ever been — ever.”

Spinella, who was elated to find herself seated next to head coach Jamie Dixon, said the opportunity to talk to the players was exciting — even if her knowledge of Pitt basketball reached back before they were born.

“We brought up the names of a few former players, but they didn’t remember them because it went too far back,” she said. “But talking to [assistant coach] Brandin Knight, he was a little more knowledgeable of the players I brought up. [The players] were all wonderful. They were all very polite — very nice, tall boys.”

When the food was gone, Dixon stood up and introduced each player individually. The players then offered the fans seated at their respective tables their 2011 season tickets and a handshake.

Senior guard Ashton Gibbs described the experience as humbling.

“It just reminds us of the fan support we have here,” Gibbs said. “That was one of the reasons I came to Pittsburgh, actually. The fans, the atmosphere, the Oakland Zoo — it’s crazy. You’ve got season-ticket holders here that, talking to them, they’re the same way.”

Dixon said the team wanted to do something special for “the random fans” that attend every game.

“We wanted to thank them for all of their support,” Dixon said. “It’s unique because it’s not like this anywhere else. Sometimes, locally, we forget it. Nationally, they understand the crowds, and they see that not a lot of places are as enthusiastic as ours.”

Pederson said he came up with the idea while discussing the distribution of season tickets a couple of months ago. He said that dinner seemed like a fun way for season-ticket holders to communicate on a personal level with the players.

“In sports, a lot of times, you have these great fans who come to games. Of course, in the case of the Petersen Events Center, it’s sold out every game,” Pederson said.

Pitt has sold out 161 consecutive games at the Petersen Events Center. The season ticket waiting list now has 9,000 members, up from last year’s 6,000.

“And yet, sometimes those fans don’t have a chance to meet and see the guys in person that they’re there to watch,” Pederson added. “So this was really a way for fans to get a chance to interact with players.”