Pitt sees first competitive action against Seton Hill

Practice started. The Blue-Gold scrimmage came and went. Now, fans have their first opportunity… Practice started. The Blue-Gold scrimmage came and went. Now, fans have their first opportunity to see the Pitt men’s basketball team in action against an opponent. This Sunday Pitt takes the floor in an exhibition game against Division II Seton Hill at 4 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center. The scrimmage marks the first of two for the Panthers, who enter the season ranked No. 6 in the ESPN/USA Today poll. Pitt returns starters Levance Fields, Sam Young and DeJuan Blair from the team that finished 27-10 overall and 10-8 in the Big East, won the Big East tournament championship and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. After sitting out 12 games with a foot injury last season, Fields returned to help lead the Panthers to the Big East tournament title while landing a spot on the Big East All-Tournament team. The point guard averaged 11.9 points and 5.3 assists on the year. Currently, Fields is rehabbing the same foot and remains doubtful for the exhibition. Freshman point guard Travon Woodall, who led all players with four assists in the Blue-Gold scrimmage, is likely to fill in for Fields. As the 2008 Big East Most Improved Player and Big East tournament MVP, Young led the Panthers with 18.1 points per game. He set the school’s record for most points in a season with 668 points. A high-flying forward, Young enters the 2008-09 season as an All-American candidate. Blair returns after a phenomenal rookie season in which he was named a consensus Freshman-All American and the Big East Rookie of the Year. He became the first freshman in Pitt history to surpass the 400-point and 300-rebound mark. The Panthers also return sophomore Gilbert Brown and senior Tyrell Biggs. Brown stepped in to the starting position after Mike Cook’s injury last season and averaged 6.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Biggs played in all 37 games, while averaging 5.7 points and 4.1 rebounds. Although the Panthers return seven of their top 10 players from last season, they are still relatively young. The team has three seniors, but the junior class is made up of only First-Team Junior College All-American transfer Jermaine Dixon. Pitt must replace last year’s sharp-shooting starting guard and 1,000-point scorer Ronald Ramon. Sophomore Brad Wanamaker, Dixon and freshman Ashton Gibbs are three prime candidates for the position. Wanamaker played in 30 games and averaged 2.2 points last season. He and Gibbs both contributed 12 points in the Blue-Gold scrimmage on Sunday, and Dixon put up 16 points while going three-for-five from beyond the arc. This is the first meeting between the Panthers and Seton Hill, as Seton Hill’s program is only entering its sixth year of existence. This season marks the Griffins’ first as an official member of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Last year, Seton Hill was considered a provisional NCAA member of the conference. The Griffins return three starters from last year’s team, which finished 12-15 overall and 11-9 in conference play. Among the returnees is second team All-WVIAC point guard Jordan Thomas from Jeannette, Pa. Last year, the Griffins’ star led the team with averages of 15.5 points and 4.2 assists per game. Senior Emmanuel Jackson and sophomore Kellon Holmes are also back. Jackson contributed 14.3 points and 4.0 assists per game, while Holmes averaged 6.5 points. Cody Boone, an All-WVIAC honorable mention and 11.2 points-per-game scorer, led the conference with 3.2 blocks per game. The junior also led the team with an average of 6.1 rebounds. Coone and Jackson were the first Seton Hill players to receive All-WVIAC honors. Pitt’s next scrimmage is Nov. 9 against La Roche. Tipoff for that contest is 1 p.m.