Lieberman: Coach Dixon deserves plenty of credit for Pitt’s hot start

Think back to exactly two months and two days ago: Pitt’s opener against the Wofford Terriers… Think back to exactly two months and two days ago: Pitt’s opener against the Wofford Terriers at the Petersen Events Center.

Amid deflated fan expectations following a mass exodus of talent and with the glaring reminder of an Elite Eight banner hanging above them, the Panthers stumbled to a 31-24 halftime deficit. Pitt eventually escaped with a 63-60 win.

“We’re a new team,” senior Brad Wanamaker said after the game. The Panthers returned zero starters from last season in the opener.

Now, Wanamaker could utter that same quote hardly out of context after Pitt’s 67-57 victory over Connecticut Wednesday night. Pitt’s slingshot from an opening-night scare to an undefeated Big East record owes significant credit to the returns of senior Jermaine Dixon and junior Gilbert Brown.

But for my money, I say coach Jamie Dixon saved this season. The lack of experience on the team is staggering, yet the Panthers never panicked — and they won’t.

Jamie Dixon wins the coach of the half-year award, unanimously, for what he’s done at Pitt. Give credit to Texas’ Rick Barnes and Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim, but neither have worked miracles quite like Dixon has. Should Pitt qualify and even have success in the NCAA Tournament, Dixon deserves significant consideration for the coach of the year award.

Besides, ho-hum, winning the gold medal at the U-19 games in New Zealand, Dixon’s vigilance over his team’s play all season has propelled Pitt (14-2, 4-0) to an undefeated Big East record so far.

The Panthers have also done it the hard way, winning three consecutive road games in some of the toughest arenas in the conference: Syracuse, Cincinnati and Connecticut.

Rebuilding? Who says this year’s Pitt squad is rebuilding?

Not bad for a team picked to finish ninth by opposing coaches in the Big East in a preseason poll.

On to quick hits.

Speaking of Cincinnati, all of a sudden one of the Big East favorites finds itself 2-3 in Big East play, with wins over Connecticut and Rutgers. The seven-point loss to Seton Hall and two-point loss to St. John’s could really come back to haunt the Bearcats come tournament and resumé-assembling time. The team has talent, but this year might be another rebuilding one for the Bearcats if they can’t find a way to pull upsets down the stretch.

For the record, the Big East will have nine teams in the NCAA Tournament this year. This league is too deep to settle on seven or eight by year’s end.

But no Big East team is going to the Final Four. The conference’s powers just don’t seem to match Texas or Kansas in terms of veteran leadership or Kentucky in terms of talent level.

Teams tend to forget how tough it is playing South Florida on the road. Notre Dame for example probably felt like it was on spring break on Jan. 5, taking a plane from snowy Indiana to sunny Tampa. Subsequently, the Irish almost laid an egg against the Bulls, winning 74-73. West Virginia also began its game against South Florida flat, clinging to a two-point halftime lead before winning 69-50.

Syracuse won its 10th-straight game against Rutgers on Wednesday night.

Connecticut is going to kick itself after missing opportunities to close out or take control of games against Georgetown and Pitt, respectively. The Huskies blew a 19-point lead against the Hoyas last Saturday to lose 72-69, sometimes abandoning an inside game on offense in favor of jump shots. Then the Huskies followed that up with a home loss to Pitt 67-57. In a game that had many twists, the Huskies never seemed to find forward Stanley Robinson when they should’ve, again, relying on jump shots to take a lead.

Awards:

Big East Player of the Week:

Notre Dame forward Luke Harangody continues to post huge numbers. Harangody led the Irish to a pair of close victories during the week, one a 74-73 win over South Florida and the other a 70-68 win against West Virginia. Against South Florida, he scored a season-high 36 points including the game-winning free throw with 1.9 seconds remaining. He scored 24 points and grabbed five rebounds against the Mountaineers.

Big East Team of the Week:

The obvious pick is Pitt, but not just because of its defensive turnaround during the games. So far this year, when Pitt shoots above 40 percent, its 12-0.

Big East Matchups to Watch For:

Saturday features the conference matchup of the year when No. 5 Syracuse travels to No. 9 West Virginia. Plenty of athletic guards and forwards to go around in this game. It should be exciting. Also, amidst watching some NFL Playoff games, tune in to watch No. 11 Georgetown take on No. 4 Villanova on Sunday.