Pitt needs answers for WVU treys

If the Pitt men’s basketball team thought they might get a breather after two tough losses to… If the Pitt men’s basketball team thought they might get a breather after two tough losses to ranked conference opponents on the road, they thought wrong.

Pitt (17-3 overall, 6-3 Big East) returns home after dropping consecutive decisions to conference foes Connecticut and Georgetown to battle the top-10 ranked West Virginia Mountaineers in this year’s first basketball installment of the “Backyard Brawl.”

The Mountaineers (17-4, 8-0) stand alone atop the new Big East Conference and are currently ranked ninth in the Associated Press and 10th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls.

Coach John Beilein has brought the Mountaineers into the national limelight and earned universal respect for what he has done with this West Virginia program. In the three years since Beilein arrived with the Mountaineers, they have gone from a losing record in 2002-03 to an Elite Eight appearance in 2004-05.

With Beilein has come the patented guard-oriented, three-point shooting, backdoor-cutting offense that has been so hard to defend.

“They’re a pretty unique team because all five guys can shoot and do a really good job of spacing the floor,” junior forward Levon Kendall said.

“We know what guys they have that can really shoot the ball well,” sophomore guard Keith Benjamin said. “We’re going to look to be patient on defense and close out all shooters and play with our hands up at all times.”

One of the Mountaineer shooters that has brutalized Pitt in the past is senior Kevin Pittsnogle, who, standing at 6 feet 11 inches, is listed as a center but doesn’t play like one. The size Pittsnogle brings to his perimeter-style game is nearly impossible to duplicate.

“When you talk about a big guy that’s guarding a six-11 guy shooting 3s, you can’t simulate it in practice,” head coach Jamie Dixon said. “You can’t simulate the quick release that Pittsnogle has in practice, and they’re good at getting him shots.”

Although Pittsnogle’s size is unique on the Mountaineers, the ability to shoot is replicated in nearly every player. He leads the team in scoring with 19.5 points per game, but is followed closely by senior guard Mike Gansey , who averages 18.5 points per game and has been considered by many to be the Big East’s, and one of the nation’s, best pure basketball players.

“[Gansey] is way more aggressive than he was last year,” Benjamin said. “He’s more of a scorer and a great defender as we all know.”

To neutralize the quick and lethal offensive set the Mountaineers run, Pitt has to focus on isolating the shooters and playing the game it plays best.

“They’ll have four guards out on the floor, and when they do that they gain ball handling and shooting with it,” Dixon said. “Rebounding is not their biggest strength but that’s a big part of what we do. We’ve got to do our things.”

The Panthers, having lost two conference games in a row, could really use a win to put them back in the hunt for a top seed in the Big East Tournament. But, the damage that has already been done could potentially hurt Pitt in the long run.

“With the Big East you can’t afford to have too many losses. WVU is at the top and that’s our main goal, to be at the top. Every loss really hurts you.”

However, the Panthers must put their recent road troubles behind them and focus on the game at hand.

“You’re not going to win every game, nobody has,” Dixon said. “We didn’t play well [against Georgetown] but we’ve learned some things from it and we’ll be better for it.”

Tonight’s contest marks the 169th meeting between the two teams, but the first time in the rivalry’s history that the two both been ranked inside the top 25. This year Pitt is 3-2 against ranked teams. And although West Virginia leads the all-time series 90-78, Pitt owns a 9-7 record over the Mountaineers in Big East Conference play.

Also at stake tonight is Pitt’s 13-game win streak at the Petersen Events Center. The Panthers are 61-5 in the four-year-old arena.

The game will be televised nationally by ESPN, and the color-commentary handled by the legendary Dick Vitale. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m.