Pitt soars to the top

‘ ‘ ‘ Sam Young doesn’t have cable TV, so he couldn’t see Boston College upset North Carolina… ‘ ‘ ‘ Sam Young doesn’t have cable TV, so he couldn’t see Boston College upset North Carolina on Sunday night for himself. But his friends and teammates made sure he knew about it right away. Young’s phone was buzzing all night, and he and the rest of the Pitt men’s basketball team heard the good news turn official on Monday afternoon. For the first time in the team’s 101-year history, Pitt is the No. 1-ranked team in the land. ‘It’s an honor,’ said Young after Pitt’s Monday practice. ‘I think this is only the beginning for us.’ Pitt (14-0, 2-0 Big East) earned the No. 1 slot in both the Associated Press poll and the USA Today/ESPN coaches’ poll. Both, which are released every Monday afternoon, had Duke (No. 2) and North Carolina (No. 3) in the slots following the Panthers. Pitt earned 70 of 72 first-place votes in the AP poll, and 30 of 31 in the USA Today/ESPN poll. North Carolina earned the other three combined votes. Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said that while it’s an accomplishment to earn the ranking for the first time in Pitt’s history, the team’s goals and outlook won’t change much. ‘It’s great for our University,’ said Dixon, ‘[but] I don’t think it’s that much different. Our players didn’t seem any different when I talked to them today.’ Still, the differences are there. Pitt’s been ranked as high as No. 2 in the country 16 times in the past ‘mdash; the last time being on Dec. 11, 2006. The last Pitt team to be ranked No. 1 in the nation was Pitt’s 1982 football team. News of the ranking buzzed around campus throughout the evening. ‘It’s just a good feeling to be No. 1,’ said sophomore Dean Coffin. ‘It’s pretty ridiculous, actually,’ added fellow sophomore Adam Camson. ‘I was screaming about it last night.’ Other fans, such as freshman Hayavadhan Thuppal, were pleased with the rating but remained on an even keel. ‘I think [being No. 1] is a pretty big deal,’ said Thuppal. ‘But it won’t mean much unless they back it up.’