At Virginia Tech & Other Dribbles ...

[DT_PITT]

** Well, I guess the Panthers aren’t going to make things easy on us fans.

** Just when it looked like our life on the bubble was over, we are back to bouncing around again.

** Just when it looked like they’ve gotten things figured out, it’s back to the same business.

** The business I’m talking about is when the Panthers aren’t hitting shots, they let their whole game fall apart. That’s what happened tonight in another game that was, once again, extremely frustrating to watch.

** I wish knew why the Panthers moved the ball so well on Sunday, put so poorly tonight. Well, that’s not completely true. I wish Jamie Dixon knew why.

** I’d also like to know what was up with Jamel Artis. He looked like one of the League’s best players Sunday, but tonight he looked like he never had really shot a basketball before.

** Similar things could be said of the shots of Chris and James. Between all of them, not only did we miss a lot, but many of the times we missed badly too.

** Still, bad shooting notwithstanding, what discouraged me most was how easily we let the Hokies score in the second half. Their shots got easier, we let them get confident and the run they went on was inevitable.

** From there, it was too little too late for a response.

** Taken on its own merits, this is not a terrible loss, or at least a road loss in the conference is never bad against a team that’s .500 in the League.

** But what is hardest to take is that this game is unfortunately a good indicator that the steps this team appeared to have taken forward in the past two weeks are at least not full and complete ones.

** And most notable among this team’s problems is their inability to show real mental discipline when facing real and substantive adversity.

** Maybe we looked so good against Duke because we never had to face any adversity.

** Our guys are now really going to have to deal with some now. Their back is against the wall and they need a win on the road to ensure their NCAA berth. Not only that, but against a team probably more talented and playing better basketball than Virginia Tech.

** We know we have the physical ability to win on Saturday. We also know that we can play good enough basketball to win on Saturday.

** The question that remains is the question that has dogged the Panthers the entire year. Do they have the mental ability to win on Saturday.

 

[MartyInLawrenceville]

Disappointing effort from all tonight except Luther. He's steady, no matter what. MY was decent enough, but early on he blew a few easy shots. Saturday will be a nail biter...and why not? Why should we as fans be able to sit and relax...

 

[bobfree]

Disappointing effort from all tonight except Luther. He's steady, no matter what. MY was decent enough, but early on he blew a few easy shots. Saturday will be a nail biter...and why not? Why should we as fans be able to sit and relax...

Effort? What was wrong with James Robinson's effort tonight? I actually thought mike young showed some effort tonight. Effort and not playing well aren't always the same.

 

[DT_PITT]

Effort? What was wrong with James Robinson's effort tonight? I actually thought mike young showed some effort tonight. Effort and not playing well aren't always the same.

I agree, I don't think the problem was that necessarily that we weren't playing hard enough.

 

[PittPoker]

Just a complete embarrassment from start to finish minus 2 minutes.

James was horrible, Artis stunk, why was Smith even in? Oh well, same ol' Pitt which means we'll either beat GT in a close game or lose by 20. Who knows with this team.

 

[UPitt '89]

Disappointing effort from all tonight except Luther. He's steady, no matter what. MY was decent enough, but early on he blew a few easy shots. Saturday will be a nail biter...and why not? Why should we as fans be able to sit and relax...

I've dogged Young most of the year for his effort.

But not tonight. Young wasn't the problem. He gave the effort.

 

[pittizit]

Missed 18 ...Threes...nuff said

 

[DT_PITT]

Missed 18 ...Threes...nuff said

And early on especially, several of them were wide open and we missed them by a lot.

It was weird almost.

 

[DT_PITT]

Just a complete embarrassment from start to finish minus 2 minutes.

James was horrible, Artis stunk, why was Smith even in? Oh well, same ol' Pitt which means we'll either beat GT in a close game or lose by 20. Who knows with this team.

I'M ALL IN!!!

 

[VJPITT]

We won our National Championship a few short days ago.

I actually think the coach has no influence what so ever on this team.

The win against Duke was because the players wanted to do it all by themselves.

Dixon gets NO credit for the Duke win. And he gets no credit for today's loss.

In my eyes he is a non factor and the play of this team SPEAKS FOR ITSELF.

 

[MartyInLawrenceville]

Ok, maybe effort wasn't the right thing to question. Execution was horrid. It was as though there was a fan pointed directly at some of Pitt's shots. They just seemed to blow away from the rim.

 

[DT_PITT]

Ok, maybe effort wasn't the right thing to question. Execution was horrid. It was as though there was a fan pointed directly at some of Pitt's shots. They just seemed to blow away from the rim.

Execution wasn't good, and shooting was hard-to-understand bad.

 

[TicoCooperFan]

Quick PG...Robinson can't deal with him on either end...entire team gets thrown off track on both ends trying to catch up. If you can't see the pattern by now...

At the Pete against Va Tech, their PG still did his damage but the rest of the Tech team was horrible and we made our jump shots and 3s.

 

[DT_PITT]

We won our National Championship a few short days ago.

I actually think the coach has no influence what so ever on this team.

The win against Duke was because the players wanted to do it all by themselves.

Dixon gets NO credit for the Duke win. And he gets no credit for today's loss.

In my eyes he is a non factor and the play of this team SPEAKS FOR ITSELF.

So let me make sure I understand.

Based on what I've read here, it would seem that you are a solid Dixon supporter, right?

 

[jcpitt]

Ok, maybe effort wasn't the right thing to question. Execution was horrid. It was as though there was a fan pointed directly at some of Pitt's shots. They just seemed to blow away from the rim.

I would certainly say the effort wasn't there tonight, Pitt never came up with the 50-50 loose balls, not once did you see a Pitt player dive on the floor for the a loose ball

 

[Protes]

The lack of fire from the team tonight, considering they were playing to punch their ticket, was really, really disappointing. Yeah, they didn't hit shots and it was ugly at times, but you just can't let it get away the way they did. We still lack the toughness and composure to stay in games when things aren't coming easy. And we just seem totally incapable of stringing two good games in a row.

 

[MajorMajors]

1. Too many easy shots for VT. Pitt's players lack defensive instincts - but that is stating the obvious.

2. Too many missed open 3s by Pitt.

3. As crappy as Pitt played, they win if they go 5-for-21 from 3, instead of 3-for-21 from 3. Hell, I could go 5-for-21 from 3. (BTW, the women's team was 8 for 21 from 3 today...)

Go Pitt.

 

[bwh05]

We weren't just missing, we were missing by a LOT. It's tough to understand how we shot that poorly.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

Some days they go in ( Sunday ) and some days they don't ( tonight )
Game was really hard to watch with both teams throwing up so many bricks.
Wish Cam Johnson was more aggressive in taking shots when it's obvious that his teammates can't hit the side of a barn. This should change next yr with a season under his belt.
Don't think it's was an effort issue it was an effectiveness issue.
There's not many easy wins in this league , the way Pitt jumped out to an early 9 pt lead I thought this was going to be one.
How big was that 25-27 footer at the end of the first half.

 

[NC Panther]

I was at the game and I can tell you that the place was extremely loud.

It's a small maybe 10K type and was not packed but, it's jammed - everything is very close to the court.

Why am I saying this?

A point that has come up over again - we don't handle adversity well.

Just seemed like we get flustered easily.

I'm not saying it's the greatest college basketball environment in the country but, I went with a guy from Roanoke and he said that this gym was louder than most.

But, enough of the atmosphere - before the game I told my friend - watch this guy w/ the headband (Artis) - he didn't know the Pitt players.

As others have said...man is he hot and cold.

This team simply lives and dies by shots going in or not.

Yes - our D was not great but, we just could not hit.

It seemed to me that Va. Tech played some real good D and it was striking what a quick athletic PG can do and what another one couldn't.

Sry JRob.

I was surprised we had a chance at the end but with them turning the ball over and missing FT's, it was a lot more on them than us for our run.

Loud gym - we couldn't hit shots - tough to win on the road.

Just a bunch of random thoughts but dang it! Here we are again needing a win.

One last thing - I for one am not of the idea that well...even if we get into the dance, we're not going anywhere.

We weren't saying that after the Duke game.

I think this team can make a run in the tournament if we can hit shots - after last night ear shattering game, a nice sterile environment via an NCAA game sounds kinda nice right now.

 

[IamHeisenberg]

May be most frustrating team we have had in a while, They have the talent, but they seem to choose not to perform to their skill levels all of the time. In many ways, it is why I hope they DON"T get in to the NCAAT. That behavior should not be rewarded.

 

[KiwiJeff]

May be most frustrating team we have had in a while, They have the talent, but they seem to choose not to perform to their skill levels all of the time. In many ways, it is why I hope they DON"T get in to the NCAAT. That behavior should not be rewarded.

Well, based on the field, we are actually better than other teams......yeah, let THAT sink in. College hoops is down this year.

 

[Jeffburgh]

We weren't just missing, we were missing by a LOT. It's tough to understand how we shot that poorly.

They shot threes like someone who spent the night drinking Manhattan ice teas taking a sobriety test.

 

[Jeffburgh]

So let me make sure I understand.

Based on what I've read here, it would seem that you are a solid Dixon supporter, right?

In a less demonstrative way, that actually was my outtake from last night.

NOW, JD is responsible in the end, and he did recruit them and has not found a way to get through to them far too often.

But, I posted before, I get how he ends up coming off like a deranged lunatic on the sidelines with this team.

I really do.

 

[pittbb80]

Spot on initial post. I dont think it was a lack of effort by the team. I thought they came out and played well for the first five minutes or so when the got up 19-10 Then they hit a stretch where they couldnt hit the ocean Yeah they were 3's mostly but they were WIDE OPEN uncontested threes. Good shots you want guys like Artis taking From that point on with each missed shot you could see their collective confidence sink. And as is this teams habit, they let it affect their defensive play in the second half As a team it looked like they were running around on defense rather than playing Team defense ON offense they stopped attacking the rim while VT took it to the rim every time and got a lot of calls in their favor.

Team is just puzzlig as you said. Guys like Artis who has a nice stroke completlely lost his abilit to shoot...........I think he air balled a three. CJ had another game here he was invisible and made you question him being a D1 player. CJ especially is baffling. He'll be very agressive one game or two, show great athletic ability going to the hoop and then look like he did yesterday..........Clueless.

Gotta give VT credit too though. They did what the last three or four teams couldn do.......they kept the panthers offf the offensive glass which has been huge for them.

Lets hope they get their collective shooting touch back for GT because I dont think they make the NCAA without another win That is going to be a very tough game.

 

[BuffetParrothead]

How many airballs did we have? I never saw so many maybe 3? That's a lot.

 

[pittbb80]

How many airballs did we have? I never saw so many maybe 3? That's a lot.

Yeah including Maia's FT...........It just got to the point where you could see collectively they were overthinkng and almost aiming their shots

 

[IamHeisenberg]

Well, based on the field, we are actually better than other teams......yeah, let THAT sink in. College hoops is down this year.

Don't care about other teams.

 

[pittbb80]

ONe other observation. Vt had Wilson on Artis for a long stretch of the game. I thought they should have isolated him down low on him and allowed him to simply shot over him. Of course as bad as Artis was shooting...........

 

[BuffetParrothead]

Well, based on the field, we are actually better than other teams......yeah, let THAT sink in. College hoops is down this year.

Its really sad for PITT basketball when we have to hope everyone else Su-ks" for us to have a chance to win a game.
Last nights performance was one of the worst I've witnessed in a long time. Three airballs, no hustle, bad to no existent shooting, VT guys grabbling the ball from our guys after rebounds, turnovers, etc.
Instead of striving for excellence we just want to be the best of the worst!
Terrible but it reflects the personality of a lot of PITT fans!

 

[anon_d97v9o3a8b6xr]

I had great seats last night, and can tell you, our players looked absolutely emotionless. Frustrated for sure, but no emotion whatsoever. I didn't see any real urgency until 1 minute left in the game. Dixon was frustrated, the players were frustrated, some of the calls last night were very tricky tacky, VT defensively were solid and all over our guys. We just could not get comfortable.

There is absolutely no reason for a team to be Jeckyll and Hyde this late in the season. You either are or aren't a solid team. Can't play great against Duke, and piss poor against VT. Air balls, lots of not even close balls, and too many missed easy shots. Bad performance on what looked like tired legs. VT should have been down by 15 to 20 early in the game. We started strong and looked like we had something going, and than all of a sudden it was gone.

If we can't get to the basket, we are doomed. If JRob and Johnson can't hit baskets when they are wide open, we are doomed, and when Artis does nothing, we are doomed.

 

[KiwiJeff]

Don't care about other teams.

Well whopdee do dooooooo

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

At least the game wasn't on a real channel.

 

[KiwiJeff]

Its really sad for PITT basketball when we have to hope everyone else Su-ks" for us to have a chance to win a game.
Last nights performance was one of the worst I've witnessed in a long time. Three airballs, no hustle, bad to no existent shooting, VT guys grabbling the ball from our guys after rebounds, turnovers, etc.
Instead of striving for excellence we just want to be the best of the worst!
Terrible but it reflects the personality of a lot of PITT fans!

Ummm, ok. Not sure what I wrote that has anything at all to do with what you wrote, but great job otherwise!

 

[FreeportPanther]

I had great seats last night, and can tell you, our players looked absolutely emotionless. Frustrated for sure, but no emotion whatsoever. I didn't see any real urgency until 1 minute left in the game. Dixon was frustrated, the players were frustrated, some of the calls last night were very tricky tacky, VT defensively were solid and all over our guys. We just could not get comfortable.

There is absolutely no reason for a team to be Jeckyll and Hyde this late in the season. You either are or aren't a solid team. Can't play great against Duke, and piss poor against VT. Air balls, lots of not even close balls, and too many missed easy shots. Bad performance on what looked like tired legs. VT should have been down by 15 to 20 early in the game. We started strong and looked like we had something going, and than all of a sudden it was gone.

If we can't get to the basket, we are doomed. If JRob and Johnson can't hit baskets when they are wide open, we are doomed, and when Artis does nothing, we are doomed.

I was curious, is there something odd about the gym that would affect the players shooting, like depth perception, or colors, or sight lines??
I know that is kind of a whacky question, but our team shot sooooo poorly, and missed badly! Air balls, missing the hoop by feet, an air ball on a FT, and VT didn't seem fazed.
It is one thing for a guy to have an off shooting night, but everyone? Wide open shots were bricked regularly. Hard to explain, but that was some Homericly terrible shooting display!

 

[33pitt99]

I was curious, is there something odd about the gym that would affect the players shooting, like depth perception, or colors, or sight lines??
I know that is kind of a whacky question, but our team shot sooooo poorly, and missed badly! Air balls, missing the hoop by feet, an air ball on a FT, and VT didn't seem fazed.
It is one thing for a guy to have an off shooting night, but everyone? Wide open shots were bricked regularly. Hard to explain, but that was some Homericly terrible shooting display!

I had the same thought. Now I know the broadcast quality was terrible so it may have been related to that, but it seemed as though the court itself was well lit, but then it was immediately very dark. Normally, you can see the first 10-15 rows of seats pretty well, but you could barely see one or two. I just wonder if there was a depth perception issue. I mean, how else can you explain shots that were as far off as some of ours last night? I know we've had bad shooting nights before, but air balling three feet over the rim is unusual for this group.

 

[UPitt '89]

Some days they go in ( Sunday ) and some days they don't ( tonight )
Game was really hard to watch with both teams throwing up so many bricks.
Wish Cam Johnson was more aggressive in taking shots when it's obvious that his teammates can't hit the side of a barn. This should change next yr with a season under his belt.
Don't think it's was an effort issue it was an effectiveness issue.
There's not many easy wins in this league , the way Pitt jumped out to an early 9 pt lead I thought this was going to be one.
How big was that 25-27 footer at the end of the first half.

Only one team was throwing up bricks.

VT shot 63% in the second half.

 

[BuffetParrothead]

Only one team was throwing up bricks.

VT shot 63% in the second half.

Atleast bricks hit the rim.
These were more like unguided Scud missles???
I knew I was going to be a wrestler when in 5th grade gym class it took me 5 mins to make a FT. Those were the days when they actually forced you to do something correctly. I shoot like PITT shot last night!

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

The inconsistency is inexplicable. I have seen many posts in this thread and other threads of "we don't know what we got" as far as this team. And it is true, it is a box of chocolates.

That's unacceptable. Why? A few years ago, when Artis and Young Freshman, JRob a SR, yes it would be explainable and acceptable. Now? JRob has started more games than any other Pitt player in history. I am gathering that Artis and Young are pretty high on that list as towards the completion of their SR years. Jeter is a JR (4 or 5 years removed from college). Jones is a Junior. Even our "young guys" have almost two full years in the program and on this level save for Wilson.

We are not a young team. Yet we play and respond to adversity like a bunch of Freshman. Disappointing. All I can say. Disappointing.

 

[FreeportPanther]

The inconsistency is inexplicable. I have seen many posts in this thread and other threads of "we don't know what we got" as far as this team. And it is true, it is a box of chocolates.

That's unacceptable. Why? A few years ago, when Artis and Young Freshman, JRob a SR, yes it would be explainable and acceptable. Now? JRob has started more games than any other Pitt player in history. I am gathering that Artis and Young are pretty high on that list as towards the completion of their SR years. Jeter is a JR (4 or 5 years removed from college). Jones is a Junior. Even our "young guys" have almost two full years in the program and on this level save for Wilson.

We are not a young team. Yet we play and respond to adversity like a bunch of Freshman. Disappointing. All I can say. Disappointing.

That's what makes this team so hard to like and get behind. They seem to have talent, but they also seem to just not give a shit on most nights.
A very hard team to like.
I'm sure Dixon is pulling his hair out over this bunch. He assembled them, but I'm sure he didn't realize this is what he was going to get out of these guys as they progressed through the system.
Takes a while to fix, need an entire roster overturn, with a scant few exceptions.