It’s all in who you know.

March Madness brings out strange relationships and peculiar… It’s all in who you know.

March Madness brings out strange relationships and peculiar connections that create game stories and tournament memories.

In the 2006 NCAA Tournament, the Pitt Panthers see a lot of familiar foes and old friends in their region.

The Kent State Golden Flashes — Pitt’s first round opponent — beat the Panthers in the 2002 regional semifinal, starting a three-year losing streak for Pitt in the Sweet 16. The Golden Flashes also shared two common opponents with Pitt, Rutgers and Syracuse. How did Kent State fare against Pitt’s familiar Big East foes?

They lost twice, allowing Rutgers’ Quincy Douby to take over their late November contest while Syracuse’s Terence Roberts torched the Golden Flashes on Dec. 31 for 21 points.

If Pitt wins their first round game, they would face one of two opponents: Bradley or Kansas.

The Bradley Braves crushed DePaul — a team Pitt beat by eight points — in November, winning on the road, 75-60. Much like Pitt, Bradley focuses its offense around a 7-footer. Patrick O’Bryant scored more than 13 points per game while hauling in eight rebounds.

Kansas features one of the youngest teams in the nation, starting three freshmen and two sophomores. Who’s responsible for the acquisition of these young stars?

One of the nation’s finest recruiters, Jayhawks’ assistant coach Joe Dooley, is. Dooley competes with Pitt’s recruiting master Barry Rohrsen, associate head coach under Jamie Dixon, for the top recruits around the country.

The Jayhawks and Panthers, stocked with young talent, are two teams with the potential to be top seeds in the next few NCAA tournaments.

If Pitt can claw its way into the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in five years, they could meet the Memphis Tigers.

In the battle of the jungle cats, Memphis head coach John Calipari would feel conflicted in his loyalties as he hails from Moon, Pa., a suburb of Pittsburgh. Memphis handled Cincinnati and Providence in December, while collecting an impressive 8-3 record against teams in the NCAA tournament field.

It wouldn’t be March Madness without upsets, so who could Pitt see if top seed Memphis falters before reaching Oakland for the regional finals?

Oh, just the neighborhood’s favorite Cinderella team, Bucknell, or a group of razor-sharp athletes from Arkansas.

As Pitt fans remember, Bucknell beat Pitt at the Petersen Events Center in the 2004-2005 campaign, 69-66. The loss snapped Pitt’s 26-game non-conference winning streak and its 49-game non-conference home winning streak.

Bucknell would have to beat a formidable SEC-based opponent in Arkansas and then Memphis to get that far — something that doesn’t seem realistic.

The Arkansas Razorbacks run with the best of them, and are coached by none other than Stan Heath, former head coach of the Kent State Golden Flashes.

When did Heath coach Kent State? Why, in 2002, of course, when the Golden Flashes shocked and declawed the Pitt Panthers en route to the school’s first-ever Elite Eight appearance.

Now, Panther fans everywhere are hoping to break the Sweet 16 curse and see Pitt reach the Elite Eight.

The highest seed in the bottom part of Pitt’s bracket is UCLA. The UCLA Bruins whose head coach is Ben Howland. Remember him?

How could anyone forget the man who brought Pitt basketball into the forefront of the college basketball world? Howland emphasized the importance of defense and toughness, two characteristics that have come to define Pitt basketball.

Dixon has taken Howland’s lead and currently owns a 75-21 record as Pitt’s head coach.

Also in the lower part of the Oakland regional is Marquette.

The Marquette Golden Eagles played Pitt twice, splitting a home-and-home series this season with the Panthers. The Golden Eagles’ head coach Tom Crean was an assistant coach at Pitt for the 1994-1995 season. And who could forget the 2003 NCAA tournament, when Marquette, led by Dwayne Wade and Travis Diener, upended the Panthers in the Sweet 16?

No one knows what the future holds for the Pitt Panthers as they embark on yet another quest for an NCAA championship, but the ride will be filled with familiar foes and quirky connections.

Jeff Greer is a staff writer for The Pitt News. Send him your favorite matchups at [email protected].