Northwestern Game & Other Dribbles ...

[DT_PITT]

** I think a game like this requires something really special. I think it requires quoting the Freddie Prinze Jr. 2001 film classic, “Summer Catch.”

** Heck, I’m not even sure of the exact quote, but near the end, the late Brian Dennehy says something to Freddie along the lines of “every now and then there comes a time when everything comes together.”

** You know the rest. Freddie goes onto pitch a no hitter into the ninth, but takes himself out of the game to chase down Jessica Biel who is ready to get on a plane. “I love her,” Freddie says. And why wouldn’t he? Jessica is so gorgeous.

** Umm … wait ... allow me to get back on point. After all, I suppose it is indeed true that every now and then there comes a time when everything does come together.

** And everything came together better for our Panthers in the second half tonight better than is has for an incredibly long time. Over six years at least. Maybe even longer. It came together so well that it was almost as if it wasn’t real. The Panthers kept moving the ball beautifully, leading to another great shot, and those shots kept going in. It was almost as if you thought this one can’t go in too?!?

** But it did. Most of them did.

** The Panther fan writing this right now is pretty happy. I’m actually kind of giddy.

** But as happy as I am as a fan, I’m happiest for Head Coach Jeff Capel.

** Before tonight, it would seem that most of the Pitt Hoops fan contingent was just about done with him. I’ll confess that I was just about there.

** Regardless of what you thought of Capel as a person, regardless of what you thought of Capel’s assistants, and regardless of what you thought of his recruiting, it was hard to get behind his coaching.

** Walking out of the Pete after last game, I remarked to @Chris Peak that there some ability on this team, but they don’t play as a team.

** But they sure played as a team tonight. How's that for an understatement?

** They took care of the ball, they moved the ball, and they shot the ball. Like never before, this was a time when everything came together for a Jeff Capel team. It is was totally gorgeous. Even more gorgeous than Jessica Biel.

** I suspect than when Jeff Capel is in practice, this is exactly what he is coaching his team to do. Dribble drive penetration, kick outs, ball reversal, and the extra pass.

** If anyone should get a game ball tonight, I think this one should go to the Coach.

** When looking at this roster before the season, we all noted the incredible amount of experience this team had within it’s four senior (or redshirt senior or super senior or graduate senior or whatever) guards.

** These four combined for 60 points, 19-32 shooting, 9-15 from three, 17 assists and 4 turnovers. Those are totally incredible numbers. Jessica Biel numbers even.

** A special shout out has to go to Nelly Cummings. Some fans have been a little tough on Nelly so far this year, and I’m not proud to say that I’ve been one of those fans. But maybe more than any of our Panthers, everything seemed to come together for Nelly tonight.

** I’m so giddy that I won’t even get into John Hugley. Capel has some work to do to get that to come together.

** But getting back to the classic “Summer Catch,” Freddie caught up with Jessica at the airport and they decided to be together. Then scout John C. McGinley offerd Freddie a contract to play with Phillies farm team and all is wonderful because everything came together.

** Here’s the rub. We never learn if Freddie is successful in the Major Leagues beyond giving up a home run to Ken Griffey Jr. Maybe that moment of it all coming together for the no hitter for Freddie was as far as he ever truly progressed.

** What we can only hope for our Panthers is that putting it all together doesn’t end on a Big 10 court in Chicago. We hope they can continue this kind of play all the way to the Big Leagues, or I should say, the Big Dance.

** But this kind of end now seems a lot more possible than it did even a week of so ago, because our players look like they may finally know the script, and maybe now they are working on the same page with the Director.

 

[Fredact]

Excellent Dribbles as always.

I can’t remember a game where Pitt had that many guys consistently hitting threes.

 

[MajorMajors]

DT - Most excellent dribbles.

(I’m thinking you should work in a reference to an attractive woman in all future dribbles…😊)

 

[Bethlehemjohn]

** I think a game like this requires something really special. I think it requires quoting the Freddie Prinze Jr. 2001 film classic, “Summer Catch.”

** Heck, I’m not even sure of the exact quote, but near the end, the late Brian Dennehy says something to Freddie along the lines of “every now and then there comes a time when everything comes together.”

** You know the rest. Freddie goes onto pitch a no hitter into the ninth, but takes himself out of the game to chase down Jessica Biel who is ready to get on a plane. “I love her,” Freddie says. And why wouldn’t he? Jessica is so gorgeous.

** Umm … wait ... allow me to get back on point. After all, I suppose it is indeed true that every now and then there comes a time when everything does come together.

** And everything came together better for our Panthers in the second half tonight better than is has for an incredibly long time. Over six years at least. Maybe even longer. It came together so well that it was almost as if it wasn’t real. The Panthers kept moving the ball beautifully, leading to another great shot, and those shots kept going in. It was almost as if you thought this one can’t go in too?!?

** But it did. Most of them did.

** The Panther fan writing this right now is pretty happy. I’m actually kind of giddy.

** But as happy as I am as a fan, I’m happiest for Head Coach Jeff Capel.

** Before tonight, it would seem that most of the Pitt Hoops fan contingent was just about done with him. I’ll confess that I was just about there.

** Regardless of what you thought of Capel as a person, regardless of what you thought of Capel’s assistants, and regardless of what you thought of his recruiting, it was hard to get behind his coaching.

** Walking out of the Pete after last game, I said to @Chris Peak there some ability on this team, but they don’t play as a team.

** But they sure played as a team tonight. How's that for an understatement?

** They took care of the ball, they moved the ball, and they shot the ball. Like never before, this was a time when everything came together for a Jeff Capel team. It is was totally gorgeous. Even more gorgeous than Jessica Biel.

** I suspect than when Jeff Capel is in practice, this is exactly what he is coaching his team to do. Dribble drive penetration, kick outs, ball reversal, and the extra pass.

** If anyone should get a game ball tonight, I think this one should go to the Coach.

** When looking at this roster before the season, we all noted the incredible amount of experience this team had within it’s four senior (or redshirt senior or super senior or graduate senior or whatever) guards.

** These four combined for 60 points, 19-32 shooting, 9-16 from three, 17 assists and 4 turnovers. Those are totally incredible numbers. Jessica Biel numbers even.

** A special shout out has to go to Nelly Cummings. Some fans have been a little tough on Nelly so far this year, and I’m not proud to say that I’ve been one of those fans. But maybe more than any Panthers, everything seemed to come together for Nelly tonight.

** I’m so giddy that I won’t even get into John Hugley. Capel has some work to do to get that to come together.

** But getting back to the classic “Summer Catch,” Freddie caught up with Jessica at the airport and they decided to be together. Then scout John C. McGinley offerd Freddie a contract to play with Phillies farm team and all is wonderful because everything came together.

** Here’s the rub. We never learn if Freddie is successful in the Major Leagues beyond giving up a home run to Ken Griffey Jr. Maybe that moment of it all coming together for the no hitter for Freddie was as far as he ever truly progressed.

** What we can only hope for our Panthers is that putting it all together doesn’t end on Big 10 court in Chicago. We hope they can continue this kind of play all the way to the Big Leagues, or I should say, the Big Dance.

** But this kind of end now seems a lot more possible than it did even a week of so ago, because our players look like they may finally know the script, and maybe now they are working on the same page with the Director.

That was a clinic in how to move the ball and pass up good shots for even better ones.

I am happy for Capel and still have not given up. I have been called “stubborn” way too many times in my life to change now.

The game was great, but what I also liked was the story that the announcers told about Capel and his practice conversation with the team. He told them in not so many words that they didn’t have the focus to win a game like this. I guess the point hit home?

I was not distraught after the W&M game because I could see the growth. Yeah, we would love for them to play a perfect 40 minutes, but they had shown in the last 3 2nd halves that they can play well above average.

I was also not worried about Nelly. I had seen him play more than well enough in too many clutch situations not to play better than he was. I believed then and still believe now that he was trying way too hard. This guy was a fan of Pitt basketball just as we have been. He had seen the glory days and always wanted to be a part of it. Now was his chance, but when you want something so bad and you want to turn around a bad program very quickly, sometimes you force things and play out of character. He is finally starting to play the way he can.

Hugley will get in better shape and start to figure it out and maybe if we keep moving the ball and hitting shots like this, he’ll get some single teams.

NC St will be a very good test on Fri. This is a team who can penetrate the ball and we’ll have to continue to improve on the defensive end to beat them.

 

[4Mark_Marty]

** I think a game like this requires something really special. I think it requires quoting the Freddie Prinze Jr. 2001 film classic, “Summer Catch.”

** Heck, I’m not even sure of the exact quote, but near the end, the late Brian Dennehy says something to Freddie along the lines of “every now and then there comes a time when everything comes together.”

** You know the rest. Freddie goes onto pitch a no hitter into the ninth, but takes himself out of the game to chase down Jessica Biel who is ready to get on a plane. “I love her,” Freddie says. And why wouldn’t he? Jessica is so gorgeous.

** Umm … wait ... allow me to get back on point. After all, I suppose it is indeed true that every now and then there comes a time when everything does come together.

** And everything came together better for our Panthers in the second half tonight better than is has for an incredibly long time. Over six years at least. Maybe even longer. It came together so well that it was almost as if it wasn’t real. The Panthers kept moving the ball beautifully, leading to another great shot, and those shots kept going in. It was almost as if you thought this one can’t go in too?!?

** But it did. Most of them did.

** The Panther fan writing this right now is pretty happy. I’m actually kind of giddy.

** But as happy as I am as a fan, I’m happiest for Head Coach Jeff Capel.

** Before tonight, it would seem that most of the Pitt Hoops fan contingent was just about done with him. I’ll confess that I was just about there.

** Regardless of what you thought of Capel as a person, regardless of what you thought of Capel’s assistants, and regardless of what you thought of his recruiting, it was hard to get behind his coaching.

** Walking out of the Pete after last game, I said to @Chris Peak there some ability on this team, but they don’t play as a team.

** But they sure played as a team tonight. How's that for an understatement?

** They took care of the ball, they moved the ball, and they shot the ball. Like never before, this was a time when everything came together for a Jeff Capel team. It is was totally gorgeous. Even more gorgeous than Jessica Biel.

** I suspect than when Jeff Capel is in practice, this is exactly what he is coaching his team to do. Dribble drive penetration, kick outs, ball reversal, and the extra pass.

** If anyone should get a game ball tonight, I think this one should go to the Coach.

** When looking at this roster before the season, we all noted the incredible amount of experience this team had within it’s four senior (or redshirt senior or super senior or graduate senior or whatever) guards.

** These four combined for 60 points, 19-32 shooting, 9-16 from three, 17 assists and 4 turnovers. Those are totally incredible numbers. Jessica Biel numbers even.

** A special shout out has to go to Nelly Cummings. Some fans have been a little tough on Nelly so far this year, and I’m not proud to say that I’ve been one of those fans. But maybe more than any of our Panthers, everything seemed to come together for Nelly tonight.

** I’m so giddy that I won’t even get into John Hugley. Capel has some work to do to get that to come together.

** But getting back to the classic “Summer Catch,” Freddie caught up with Jessica at the airport and they decided to be together. Then scout John C. McGinley offerd Freddie a contract to play with Phillies farm team and all is wonderful because everything came together.

** Here’s the rub. We never learn if Freddie is successful in the Major Leagues beyond giving up a home run to Ken Griffey Jr. Maybe that moment of it all coming together for the no hitter for Freddie was as far as he ever truly progressed.

** What we can only hope for our Panthers is that putting it all together doesn’t end on Big 10 court in Chicago. We hope they can continue this kind of play all the way to the Big Leagues, or I should say, the Big Dance.

** But this kind of end now seems a lot more possible than it did even a week of so ago, because our players look like they may finally know the script, and maybe now they are working on the same page with the Director.

WE’RE BA….. no

 

[gary2]

WE’RE BA….. no

On most nights you can count on scoring from Hugley, Hinson and Burton. Two of Elliot, Cummings and Nike are needed to win against good competition.

Tonight, Elliot, Cummings and Nike all delivered.

How often these things happen will determine our fate.

 

[mike412]

I tuned in with Pitt up 27-20. Next thing you know, Pitt is up 57-38. I watched players getting the ball and kicking it out to a teammate for a wide open 3. I watched 3 after 3 go down. I saw players with Pitt on their uniforms playing tough defense.

I was convinced that it was an alternative universe and these things were a mirage, not real life. Are you telling me we actually did these things for real?

 

[PittPharm2002]

As a poster who has been critical of Nelly - I am extremely happy for him to have a game and performance like this .

Heck even Burton was passing !

 

[DT_PITT]

DT - Most excellent dribbles.

(I’m thinking you should work in a reference to an attractive woman in all future dribbles…😊)

Haha - I will see what I can do! Lol

 

[kyfra]

Bro…no spoiler alert?

 

[Fsgolfdr]

This is an even better display of bb than I was expecting out of this group before the season started . I had high expectations that this would be the best Panther team since JD left . They’ve been hugely disappointing so far this season , but last night they showed me I’m right and that’s with a limited Hugley .

I’ve seen enough of JC over the last 4+ yrs that it’s hard not to want to see Pitt move on from him , but I’d prefer to be wrong and see him succeed. This kind of performance from his team is a strong statement that there’s better days ahead with JC as the HC .

I heard a phrase that I think really summarizes my feeling towards Pitt bb over the last 6 yrs and that is that the Jimmy and Joes will always beat the X and O’’s . Pitt issue has been talent , the lack of it . Great coaches always seem to have great players !

I’ve been hard on Nelly , his play until last night was” junior varsity “ maybe it’s taken him a few games to feel comfortable, but the Nelly from last night will be an asset for this team going forward . Let’s hope he can sustain this level of play .

I was watching the Steelers last night and when I turned on the Pitt game I couldn’t believe the score . Let’s hope this is the beginning of good yr and not the highlight . Go Panthers !

 

[sonofabit]

Haha - I will see what I can do! Lol

Alphabetically you skipped Alba…….

 

[Chescat]

Great Dribbles as always.
Also a lot of good comments
by other posters in this
thread. I hope this is the
turning point for Nelly.
Simply my opinion, but I
feel he's just been trying
too hard to prove himself
here. He has talent, is quick,
and although not a true pg.
I believe he can be effective
as long as it's not Capel's
pg oriented offense. It wasn't
last night and we saw the
results.

 

[HailToPitt1985]

Capel coached a great game last night. I hope he sees that and understands that this recipe works...hard-nosed defense, protect the ball, extra passes to get a better shot, rebounding. He can learn from this win as well as from the losses. I'm hoping we don't end up seeing more of the same with Capel and he reverts back to what he's been the past few years.

 

[Skip74]

Great Dribbles! You could see from the FDU and WM games that this team can shoot. The NW game confirms that. We’re not gonna hit threes like last night in every game. But, the days when our opponents would simply clog the paint (challenging us to score) are over!

 

[KennyTheKangaroo]

The depth really does seem to be tangibly better this season

 

[4Mark_Marty]

The depth really does seem to be tangibly better this season

They have 7 guys that will be relied upon every night to give them something. Hinson, Hugley, Cummings, Burton, Elliott, Sibande and Federicko. The twins and Santos do things that work sometimes, but they can't be relied upon for consistency yet. Our top 7 is solid. The bottom 3 are hit or miss. That's more than we've had in years.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Flipping between the Steelers and Pitt BB (dammit, missed my chance for just going total stream of conscience posting) and it was staggered enough to catch alot of both things.

1. That maybe the most "team" oriented game I have seen since well you know when.

2. There are two sides of the court!! I am not talking the two ends with baskets, but the two sides of the arc. Amazing, Pitt found this out. Instead of loading up 3 guys with throwing the ball back and forth with no movement leading to a contested 3, we reversed the ball continuously.

3) I have to admit, the passing and decisions were great, but when you shoot like we did, you really can up your assist to TO ratio.

4) That being said, there was more movement without the ball, by the ball and less one on one stuff that I have seen in the Capel era.

5) Last night, this team, at least for one knight, reminded me of those NCAA teams who get a 5-7 seed, full of transfers, with alot of man strength guys who are a bitch of a matchup. I am thinking Wichita State or Iowa State or Texas Tech in the past. Big bodied guys who are versatile and can knock down shots.

6) If we can go 1-1 next 2 games, that will be a further step, but dammit I want to beat NC State.

7) That was fun. And Jessica Biel is any welcome addition to a thread.

 

[Faix87]

Just finished The Sinner season 1. Jessica is great in it.

 

[New York Panther]

A special shout out has to go to Nelly Cummings. Some fans have been a little tough on Nelly so far this year, and I’m not proud to say that I’ve been one of those fans. But maybe more than any of our Panthers, everything seemed to come together for Nelly tonight.

Nelly reminds me a little of Tyson Walker, who transferred from Northeastern to Michigan State last year. Walker, who is about the same size as Cummings, struggled for a good bit of last season before finally hiting his stride. But once it clicked he was really good, and it has continued into this season big time. Nelly only has one season with us, so I'm glad to see it may be clicking with him soon enough to really be a factor for us for all of this year.

 

[New York Panther]

I was convinced that it was an alternative universe and these things were a mirage, not real life. Are you telling me we actually did these things for real?

It did seem like an alternate universe, and I kept waiting for our normal reality to set in. I don't think I was finally able to relax until the game was well under the 10-minute mark. Don't know if we can expect something like this again for a long time, but it was thoroughly enjoyable to watch for one game.

 

[PittMan 72]

Well @DT_PITT, as we all know too well, that was just 1 game. We’ve seen brief flashes in past seasons under HC JC going back to his FSU ACC debut. So we’ll see. BUT, it showed what the team can be capable of IF they, as a team:

• play tough, aggressive D with their feet & stay out of foul trouble so they can play a rotation of who they want, when they want
• move without the ball an offense and get open/present themself to passers
• move the ball quickly & accurately; make the extra pass when it helps to get a better shot
• value the ball and limit turnovers
• use penetration with the pass and/or dribble to move and collapse the opposing D
• and, oh yes, MAKE SHOTS (This of course will be the thing most subject to variability, because NO team will shoot from outside like that every time. But by doing the other things to get good, open looks where the shooter isn‘t rushed and also has space to shoot in rhythm and using his normal stroke, Pitt looks like they can be an effective 3 point shooting team and make defenses have to defend much more area. That can open up driving lanes and create room for more interior attack).

 

[PittMan 72]

It did seem like an alternate universe, and I kept waiting for our normal reality to set in. I don't think I was finally able to relax until the game was well under the 10-minute mark. Don't know if we can expect something like this again for a long time, but it was thoroughly enjoyable to watch for one game.

Nelly looked more relaxed last night. Played within the flow of the game. In some earlier games he seemed to be pressuring himself to score. When he plays like last night, his points will come. He shouldn’t have to try to force it to score.

Pitt looks to have some more options and a greater diversity of scoring weapons. Nelly needs to realize he can be productive either way: setting up the offense and helping others to score; or at times them getting the ball back to him for an open shot and scoring opportunity.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

Well @DT_PITT, as we all know too well, that was just 1 game. We’ve seen brief flashes in past seasons under HC JC going back to his FSU ACC debut. So we’ll see. BUT, it showed what the team can be capable of IF they, as a team:

• play tough, aggressive D with their feet & stay out of foul trouble so they can play a rotation of who they want, when they want
• move without the ball an offense and get open/present themself to passers
• move the ball quickly & accurately; make the extra pass when it helps to get a better shot
• value the ball and limit turnovers
• use penetration with the pass and/or dribble to move and collapse the opposing D
• and, oh yes, MAKE SHOTS (This of course will be the thing most subject to variability, because NO team will shoot from outside like that every time. But by doing the other things to get good, open looks where the shooter isn‘t rushed and also has space to shoot in rhythm and using his normal stroke, Pitt looks like they can be an effective 3 point shooting team and make defenses have to defend much more area. That can open up driving lanes and create room for more interior attack).

It is just one game , but it does show you what’s possible !

 

[PittMan 72]

It is just one game , but it does show you what’s possible !

Absolutely. And the difference in approach and execution was impressive.

Now start stacking efforts like that with some consistency.

 

[DT_PITT]

Well @DT_PITT, as we all know too well, that was just 1 game. We’ve seen brief flashes in past seasons under HC JC going back to his FSU ACC debut. So we’ll see. BUT, it showed what the team can be capable of IF they, as a team:

• play tough, aggressive D with their feet & stay out of foul trouble so they can play a rotation of who they want, when they want
• move without the ball an offense and get open/present themself to passers
• move the ball quickly & accurately; make the extra pass when it helps to get a better shot
• value the ball and limit turnovers
• use penetration with the pass and/or dribble to move and collapse the opposing D
• and, oh yes, MAKE SHOTS (This of course will be the thing most subject to variability, because NO team will shoot from outside like that every time. But by doing the other things to get good, open looks where the shooter isn‘t rushed and also has space to shoot in rhythm and using his normal stroke, Pitt looks like they can be an effective 3 point shooting team and make defenses have to defend much more area. That can open up driving lanes and create room for more interior attack).

One game indeed!

 

[DT_PITT]

It is just one game , but it does show you what’s possible !

Exactly. Plus it was fun too. This season hasn't been very much fun as of late.

 

[Zeldas Open Roof]

i always felt bad for the pitcher who got kicked off the team for accidentally setting fire to the dugout and press box. it was an accident, they didnt need to kick him off the team.

 

[joeydavid]

 

[4Mark_Marty]

Exactly. Plus it was fun too. This season hasn't been very much fun as of late.

Would be nice to have some of those efforts in the Pete soon.

 

[HailToPitt1985]

Maybe it was one game, but it was one game that was fun to watch from start to finish. We haven't had that in quite a while and probably only one other time under Capel. That's a sad statement that we've had so few games to watch that were called fun and entertaining. And after all, isn't that what we try and look for as fans? None of us wants to be mad and disgusted as fans and that's the way we mostly have been for the past 6 years.

 

[Ski11585]

Flipping between the Steelers and Pitt BB (dammit, missed my chance for just going total stream of conscience posting) and it was staggered enough to catch alot of both things.

1. That maybe the most "team" oriented game I have seen since well you know when.

2. There are two sides of the court!! I am not talking the two ends with baskets, but the two sides of the arc. Amazing, Pitt found this out. Instead of loading up 3 guys with throwing the ball back and forth with no movement leading to a contested 3, we reversed the ball continuously.

3) I have to admit, the passing and decisions were great, but when you shoot like we did, you really can up your assist to TO ratio.

4) That being said, there was more movement without the ball, by the ball and less one on one stuff that I have seen in the Capel era.

5) Last night, this team, at least for one knight, reminded me of those NCAA teams who get a 5-7 seed, full of transfers, with alot of man strength guys who are a bitch of a matchup. I am thinking Wichita State or Iowa State or Texas Tech in the past. Big bodied guys who are versatile and can knock down shots.

6) If we can go 1-1 next 2 games, that will be a further step, but dammit I want to beat NC State.

7) That was fun. And Jessica Biel is any welcome addition to a thread.

At the risk of derailing this thread, let's just say that my mom and I watched Seventh Heaven for very different reasons. It came out at a formative time for young Ski.

 

[PittMan 72]

At the risk of derailing this thread, let's just say that my mom and I watched Seventh Heaven for very different reasons. It came out at a formative time for young Ski.

A picture’s worth a thousand words. No further explanation needed.

 

[JimPL]

A big night for Nelly Cummings. Early in the year he looked like he was in over his head. Last night it all came together.

Hard to believe Pitt got nothing from Hurley and still had a 32 point lead at one point.

Steelers win. Pitt wins. I slept like a log last night.

 

[Pittisit4me]

I hope Capel takes that game film and shows it for the players over and over again all year long. That was a masterpiece that any coach or team would be proud of, including any blueblood. If they get stale, Capel has video proof that these players can get it done and it should serve them well going forward.