Watching ACC PM. Saw Fields is out.
He is having a quite the career as a backup.
Pitt hoops top story vs Va.
Looks like he has had a couple starts this year.
Wish him well.

I know it’s a random question mid season. Does anyone know whatever happened with Gavin Teasdale. I know he will never wrestle in college again, just hoping that his life got turned around and he’s healthy now.

The first live Panther-Lair Show of 2023 is jam-packed with plenty of things to talk about, from the Pitt hoops team's 4-0 start to the ACC schedule to the football team's exciting finish to the 2022 season and everything in between. Tune in to join the discussion with your comments and questions.

i know, my timing sucks and we need to enjoy this run and worry about next year, next year, yeah yeah i know but im gonna ask this anyways.

We are losing 4 guards, burton, nike, elliott and Nelly. i see two incoming freshmen guard recruits and Dior returning (Hopefully) and Santos, who i honestly dont even consider a guard but we'll call him a guard. With that said, do we go all in on bringing in one (or two) upper classmen guard transfers in the off-season?

thanks, i'll hang up and listen..

NC State leads Duke

** Regardless of how much one may or may not like him personally, it’s nearly impossible not to think of UVA Head Coach Tony Bennett as one of the very best coaches in the College Basketball Business.

** If you are one who likes X’s and O’s and watching a well-executed offense and a disciplined defense, the Cavaliers nearly always offer a tremendous exhibition.

** In the first two minutes of this 9pm contest, we watched Virginia’s mover-blocker offense generate three beautiful buckets. In the same time frame, their pack-line defense pushed the Panthers into rushed shots or turnovers.

** To the Panthers’ credit, they showed some battle for the rest of the first half. But it also seemed as if they just couldn’t execute on Virginia’s level. Virginia switched our screens and prevented the Panthers from getting much from them, often leaving us just trying to go one-on-one where help would almost always arrive.

** Defensively, the Panthers were losing shooters from screens or cuts to layups. All of this adds up to a 10 point halftime deficit, even when it didn’t even look like the Panthers played all that poorly. I even had a few thoughts of leaving this one early because of the very late start.

** But after the Panthers and Cavs traded a few buckets in the first four minutes of the second half, and the lead was pushed to 12, one of the teams ended up looking like the much better coached team. And it really wasn’t even close.

** After Kihei Clark made a layup at the 16:00 mark, the Cavs didn’t score again until Pitt had the lead. And excepting a notorious game against one particular UMBC team, rarely have I seen a UVA team look so incredibly rushed or stymied, mostly through better execution on switching off screens by the Panthers.

** Meanwhile, or their end, the Panthers, most notably Nelly, started going outside and around the UVA double team of our ball screen, effectively leaving the Panthers in 5-4 four situations to attack.

** This was the second half recipe conjured up by Coach Capel. And the great one on the other bench never really offered an answer.

** The result was an absolute blast – a huge win – and the best time the Panther faithful have had at the Pete since the only other time we beat Virginia since we entered the ACC. Either that, or even since the time we bested the Dukies in Dixon’s last year.

** What’s most remarkable about our Panthers, who at the moment are completely tied for first in the ACC, is that they look like a team demonstrating near perfect chemistry. This is not something we can say that we’ve witnessed in Capel’s first four years. We can’t even say we saw any of it in Pitt’s first four games this year. But we can now.

** One of the biggest parts of chemistry is how a team can collectively respond to adversity. We’ve already described how the team responded to first half adversity. But a key moment of the second half showed us something else. After the Panthers finally took a 2 point lead around 10 minutes. After a nice stop, Jamarius got blocked on a fast break that could have pushed the lead to four. Instead, Clark got a toss in bank shot and one, and the Panthers were suddenly back down one.

** At the time, I noted this as a critical potential turning point. But it wasn’t.

** The Panthers came down and Nike drove for his monster slam, and after a Panther steal, Blake executed a corner three and the lead was indeed driven to four.

** But the Panthers work was far from done. This is still Virginia and after the Cavs retook a two point lead, Nelly and Greg executed a cool out of bounds play getting the Panthers two foul shots. And the execution from that point on never stopped, including a couple of gorgeous dishes inside to Fede.

** In the those final minutes, we scored our last 17 points from 6 different players. That’s chemistry.

** In the second half, we never turned the ball over. That’s chemistry too.

** During the second half, we outscored the Cavs 45-29 (if you don’t count the banked in three at the buzzer). That’s chemistry as well. But even more than that, it’s coaching. Not many teams score 45 points in a half against Virginia. And heck, we've even had a couple games against the Cavs when we didn’t even score 45 points in two haves.

** For the first time in a long time, the Panthers look like a well coached team. We have players who understand and are embracing their roles. They are a far cry from the group they were in November. And they are pretty darn good. They are good enough to want to stay up past 1:00am on a school night to write "dribbles."

** At 4 O’clock on Saturday, the Panthers will face the Clemson Tigers, a team that has gotten the best of the Panthers seemingly more than should have since we joined the ACC. Win this one, and we will appear on a large chunk of these early season “bracketologies.” As we should. Because at this time, we certainly have the look of an NCAA Tournament Team. Check that. Instead let's say a “well coached NCAA Tournament Team.”

** My last hope is that more Panther fans will get to the Pete on Saturday. These guys are plenty of fun to watch. Both the players and the coaching staff deserve closer to a full house of support.

Burn out in February/ March? I'm hoping Capel starts to give the Diaz-Graham twins some more minutes to both get them some experience and rest other players. He's been playing them 4-5 minutes per game. I'd like to see them get 10 - 12 minutes each per game. He needs to develop them and keep his starters fresh.

We'll see how this plays out.

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Nice on them

Insensitive jerk off. But he will pay no price

Humble brag. My son is the youngest kid as a freshman in his grade. He is barely 5ft 8in. Somehow has 13 shoes which I still don’t understand. He is the best player on JV and the point guard. But he has incredible vision, a respectable outside shot, sets everything up, and the whole team takes his demeanor. Last night he only had 5 points but they lose without him and the added assists, tough defense, getting ball to players in right places. All the things a good guard does.

I am hardly comparing my son to Nelly Cummings as a basketball player. But we lose that game last night without all the things physically and mentally that Nelly did. More so second half. And guess what he is 6ft and was hardly recruited.

When someone in a thread asked what’s different. It’s Nelly and all those types of things and plenty more that I described my son has to do to help his team that doesn’t always show up in recruiting rankings. Kind of like BK who to this day I believe had some secret mind control over the game. I hope we create a linkage of these type of winning point guards. To me that’s what creates the chemistry.

Side note my son had to go to his center multiple times to remind him to tuck in his Jersey. Sometimes it’s those little leadership things that make chemistry. Nelly has that from what I can gather. Hope his brother does as well. And we can keep building this We All We Got Chemistry!!!

I'm sorry but I rarely post to this board. So, if this was covered, I missed it. Is Hughley headed for a redshirt? Was his knee issue/injury more serious than first thought? Being in street clothes in the conference part of the season seems to tell that a redshirt might be coming for him. What has anyone else herd or seen?

I don't spend as much time on the basketball board, but I have been critical of Capel at times in the past when I have posted here. I've always felt he's recruited pretty well, even if everybody he's landed didn't necessarily work out, but there just always seemed to be something missing from a unity/cohesion standpoint with his teams here. I don't think I'm saying anything anything profound, and there is obviously a long way to go, but this team just looks and feels different from that perspective. I was cautiously optimistic that this team was the best Capel has had to date, at least on paper, and it has far exceeded my expectations (at least so far).

Combine that with the incoming 2023 recruiting class, the news this morning about Brandin Cummings, plus any further good recruiting news potentially to come, and I can honestly say I'm happy for the guy. He was dealt a very tough hand when he came here and, even though I do think he had some missteps along the way, I think we're starting to come out the other side. I've always closely followed the program, but I am as excited as I've been about Pitt basketball in probably a decade. And a huge credit for that goes to him and his perseverance in building things back up.

Now we've seen these momentary blips happen with him before, and then crash in unbelievable fashion, so I don't want to completely count my chickens just yet. But I do think this time is going to be different.

Showing a great 1st touch with DC United U17s

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Pitzer now ranked by FloWrestling as the #5 ranked Heavyweight. Now what do you do with his Redshirt?

I thought this was interesting to listen to. Restores my faith in humanity a bit:

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Haven't seen anything from him in quite some time and after the UNC win I would have definitely thought he would give his analysis.

I know he picks winners in the staff picks so I am assuming he is still on staff here in some capacity.

Anyone know, is he still part of the staff? I miss his insights.

As far as I can tell, nothing has really changed with some of the guys we’ve been talking about - namely, transfer candidates Donovan McMillon and Derrick Davis.

I still expect Pitt to land McMillon. The former Peters Township standout who went to Florida for two seasons has been circled as a likely Pitt commit since he entered the transfer, and I think it’s just a matter of time.

Position-wise, McMillon fits well as a boundary safety in Pitt’s defense. He has experience in college and should be able to step in as a replacement for Brandon Hill, who is not expected to return for his redshirt senior season in 2023.

The Panthers actually have some talented young players at safety, with Javon McIntyre and Stephon Hall, in particular, penciled in at the boundary safety spot. But McMillon fits really well there and will give the secondary more depth, talent and experience. I think he’ll be a good add.

As for Davis, it really is about the Pitt staff deciding what to do with him. I don’t think they will take him as a defensive player; that’s not about his preference or anything like that - I think they just don’t projecting him as an ACC-level safety or linebacker. It’s pretty much running back or bust, from what I gather, so the coaches have to make some of the decisions we discussed yesterday:

Do they want a transfer running back? And do they believe he can play running back at an ACC level?

Like I’ve said, I would do it. I think he can hit some home runs if the blocking gives him an opening. And adding another older back to the room would help fill out the depth this season, when Pitt is projected to have two veterans and two freshmen.

We’ll see how things develop over the next few days, but I think that if Pitt gives Davis the green light, he’ll be a Panther.

Where has Narduzzi been?
As coaches hit the road for off-campus recruiting the last few weeks, there are a few rules guiding their travels.

For instance, each coaching staff can visit each recruit once per week. And the head coach can only have one total off-campus visit with each recruit.

Given that rule, it’s notable anytime Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi visits a recruit. So let’s run down where he has been over the last two weeks.

Narduzzi’s travels started on Friday, Dec. 2, with a trip to Washington, D.C., to see defensive tackle commit Isaiah Neal. Defensive line coach Charlie Partridge and running backs coach Andre Powell joined on that visit, and I think it was interesting that Narduzzi made Neal the first stop on his December tour.

A recently-minted four-star who emerged this fall as one of the top recruits in the class, Neal is a recruit who has the staff excited. He’s a playmaking defensive tackle, explosive and fast, and he’s got a really high ceiling.

- The next day, Narduzzi went to Virginia for one of the most important visits he made in December. Along with linebackers coach Ryan Manalac, Pitt’s head coach attended the state semifinals to watch linebacker commit Jordan Bass in action. Bass helped lead his team to a victory that day - as well as another one a week later for back-to-back state titles - and after the game, Narduzzi and Manalac spent the better part of the evening with Bass and his family.

Locking up Bass - as well as a few others - was a key step in securing the top end of this recruiting class. He’s arguably the top overall prospect in the group and a high-end outside linebacker who should be a great fit for Pitt’s defense. He had a number of schools chasing him, but Pitt seems to have him set to sign next Wednesday.

- On Sunday Dec. 4, Narduzzi and Manalac were local, heading out to Leechburg for an in-home visit with linebacker commit Braylan Lovelace. While Lovelace plays at a lower level in the WPIAL, he’s got athleticism and a frame that he should be able to fill out once he gets into a college strength program. He was a productive do-it-all player at Leechburg, though, rushing for 1,241 yards and 17 touchdowns with 9.8 yards per carry this season and adding four catches for 80 yards and another score on offense.

- Monday, Dec. 5, found Narduzzi meeting with receivers coach Tiquan Underwood to visit receiver commit Kenny Johnson. One of two receiver commits in the class, Johnson has slid under the radar since June, but I think he was a really good commit for the coaches to land and one of Underwood’s priorities after he got the Pitt job last offseason.

- The next day, Narduzzi and cornerbacks coach Archie Collins were in Georgia to visit offensive line commit BJ Williams. Pitt flipped Williams from Memphis after he took an official visit at the end of June, and he’s a three-star guard prospect. Williams plays left tackle for Creekside High School in Fairburn (Ga.), and I think if you recruit high school tackles to play guard, you’ve got a good chance of ending up with solid athleticism in the interior of your offensive line.

Williams looks like he can make that transition and bring some pretty good mobility - as well as plenty of physicality - to the guard position.

- Narduzzi came back north after the Williams visit for a pair of in-home visits with two commits from Ohio: linebacker Rasheem Biles and offensive lineman Ryan Carretta.

Biles fits the mold of recent Pitt linebacker commits: he’s an athletic player who lines up at safety for Pickerington Central on defense and also plays receiver and running back on offense. MaxPreps says he had two interceptions in his five games played this season, but his Hudl shows him picking off more than that; maybe some of them were called back. But he scored at least two pick-sixes, and when he bulks up a bit, he looks like he can be another big athlete playing outside linebacker with the physicality to defend the run and the athleticism to play in coverage.

Carretta is from Columbus, in the heart of Big Ten country, and he committed to Pitt right on the heels of an official visit to Michigan State. The Spartans were the Panthers’ top competition, and Pitt won that battle.

Carretta and Biles are both commits we should probably talk about more than we currently do.

- Narduzzi finished last week in Florida, as he and tight ends coach Tim Salem were in Apopka to visit offensive line commit Tai Ray. Apopka’s left tackle, Ray is big and athletic, and while he could ultimately end up as an athletic guard, I suspect he’ll stay at tackle in college.

Continued...

I missed this on Signing Day, but Jaden Bradley apparently signed with Charlotte.

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I'm here at the Petersen Events Center for Pitt-Virginia, and we'll use this thread to discuss the game as it happens.

First note: John Hugley is not going through warmups.

#5 by Intermat Wrestling. Last week, unranked. This week after a solid performance over the weekend, he jumped to #5. Amazing!

I’ll be coming into town, so maybe we can meet up at Fuel and Fuddle!

Anyone else in?