Experience and depth in the frontcourt key to Panthers’ success

Experience, depth, strong rebounding, solid defense and consistent scoring contributions are… Experience, depth, strong rebounding, solid defense and consistent scoring contributions are all characteristics that can make up a great basketball team’s frontcourt.

The Pitt men’s basketball team could exemplify all of those attributes this year.

After a 2001-2002 campaign that resulted in one of the most successful seasons in school history, it would seem that things could not get much better in the future.

However, the expectations are even higher this year. With all starting players and all but one member from the bench returning, the Panthers are anticipating a great upcoming season in which they have already been given the preseason rank of No. 4 in the ESPN/USA Today poll.

“We have depth. We have four or five good players that can all go into the game and have good qualities to help the team,” center Toree Morris said, describing the Panthers’ frontcourt.

That depth is apparent with the contributions of each player of the frontcourt last season.

Leading the frontcourt is 6-foot-8-inch senior Donatas Zavackas, who has started the past two years for Pitt.

In his junior year, Zavackas was the team’s third leading scorer, averaging 11.1 points per game to go along with 5.4 rebounds per game. He also led the team in the free throw category, shooting 81.4 percent for the season.

This year, Zavackas will be looked to for a heightened leadership role along with improvements to his well-rounded game.

“We expect him to shoot the ball better from three-point range this year,” head coach Ben Howland said. “I think Donatas did a good job rebounding the ball and he is our best post defender. He exemplifies toughness and we expect him to improve every facet of the game.”

Starting at small forward will be the versatile 6-foot-4-inch redshirt junior Jaron Brown, who posts one of the most complete games of anyone on the team.

Last year, Brown led the team in rebounding with 6.1 per game and contributed 9.3 points and 2.3 assists per game. Brown’s versatility is shown through his ability to play small forward and shooting guard as well as defend against three different positions.

Howland considers Brown, “a glue-guy. He really does everything well. He handles the ball like a guard, but is the leading rebounder, as well as an outstanding defensive player.”

Rounding out the starters is 6-foot-10-inch junior center Morris. Morris averaged 4.0 points per game and 3.3 rebounds per game along with 21 total blocks last season.

“I think my teammates and the coaches will look for me to do more this year by being more active and contributing more to the team than last year,” Morris said.

Morris’ size poses a threat to opposing teams and will be expected to use his presence for the team’s benefit.

“Toree has a great work ethic and attitude and he is just going to get better and better,” Howland said.

Contributing off the bench this year will be 6-foot-8-inch senior Ontario Lett.

Lett averaged 8.5 points per game and 4.6 rebounds per game and also took a heightened role in the Panthers postseason success last year.

Considered a surprise with his major contributions from last year, Lett is expected to improve and be extra motivated for his senior year.

Another key to Pitt’s success last year was Chevon Troutman, a 6-foot-7-inch redshirt sophomore. Troutman averaged 5.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game to add another dimension to the Pitt frontcourt.

He saw an increase in minutes midway through the season and become an imperative part of Pitt’s success.

“I think my role will be pretty much the same, but I think I’ll be expected to do more scoring-wise and defensively,” Troutman said.

Redshirt sophomore Mark McCarroll and freshmen Ed Turner and Levon Kendall will all try to gain experience and contribute as much as possible to complete the Panther’ frontcourt this season.

McCarroll saw some playing time last year, as he averaged 2.8 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-6-inch Turner, from Buffalo, N.Y., and 6-foot-9-inch Kendall, from Vancouver, British Columbia, had very successful careers in high school and should learn the ropes from a very experienced Panther frontcourt.

With the backcourt doing the majority of the scoring, the frontcourt stresses the importance of controlling the game by other aspects.

“As a unit, we played good defense and are tenacious as far as rebounding,” Morris said. He added that the frontcourt can improve on free throws, but that it has been a point of improvement during the off-season.

Another point of work according to Troutman is a need to stay tough in the post because the Panthers’ frontcourt is undersized compared to many other teams.

The 2002-2003 season appears to be a pinnacle in the Pitt men’s basketball program with the new Peterson Events Center, depth in returning starters and experienced players off the bench.

“[Pitt] is a great place to be right now,” Troutman summed up. “There’s such attention from all over the country and it makes you want to play hard for this school and help it continue to get better and better.”

This season will pose many challenges throughout because of the high expectations for a team that has stayed intact after a successful season last year.

“Teams are going to be gunning for us every game,” Troutman added. “Some of the worst teams are going to play their best games against us and we need to be prepared for all of them.”