Pitt plays host to Eastern Washington to begin Gotham Classic
Pitt, like most teams from the major conferences, annually has played in a regular-season tournament, and that has often meant the Panthers get to play multiple neutral-site games.
This year, the Panthers only get one such game ? Dec. 20 at Madison Square Garden against Davidson. The event they are in, the Gotham Classic, is played mostly on home courts.
The Panthers (6-1) will have three home games as part of the Gotham Classic, starting tonight when they play host to Eastern Washington (5-4). Pitt also will play Morehead State (Sunday) and Western Carolina (Dec. 23) in home games over the next two weeks as part of the event.
Jamie Dixon said this was a good event for the Panthers this season because they had the neutral-site game against Gonzaga scheduled as well.
?You never know who you are going to get in these events,? Dixon said. ?Generally, [he would prefer to play more neutral-court games in these events], and that?s what we?ve done. Last year, we did Maui [three games there, one at the Petersen Center]. We have done them where we had four home games ? there are all different ways of doing it.
?We obviously like playing in New York, we have booked these a lot of years in advance, so you?re not sure who you will get, but it is important how good these opponents are, especially with the RPI. So we are fortunate because we have some good teams to play.
?These events, you want to be on national TV, you want to play good opponents and you?d like to play in a place where you recruit at and that?s obviously what makes this one attractive to us.?
The Eagles are coming off a 96-86 loss against Davidson in their first Gotham Classic game, but they should be one of the best nonconference teams the Panthers will play.
Last season, they won the Big Sky Conference tournament and made it into the NCAA tournament. The team looks a little different, however, after it lost some key players to graduation. But Dixon said they are going to be a tough matchup for the Panthers because they run a lot of good offense and can score from every position, making them hard to guard.
?They lost a really good player from last year, but they have some really good players coming back as well,? Dixon said. ?They play a little bit different than anyone we really have faced, they weave and like to spread it out on offense and try to get some favorable matchups. They are not huge, but they have five guys on the court who are almost interchangeable, and that makes it tough to match up with them.
?They are different in how they play because they try to space you out, then drive; they will, like I said, do some weave and even some dribble-drive offense. They have it going, they do a good job of getting international kids.?
Eastern Washington?s top player is senior guard Austin McBroom, who averages 18 points and 3.6 assists per game and scored 33 points against Davidson.
The Eagles are balanced as well with four players averaging at least 13.8 points per game. The team averages 84 points per game and has scored more than 100 twice and more than 80 five times.
The Panthers have had a nice break since their 100-47 blowout of Central Arkansas Sunday after Dixon gave them two days off. And that game became a blowout so quickly that Dixon was able to rest all of his starters and use his bench liberally. As for the rest . . .
Dixon isn?t so sure about that, though, because he said trying to finish a semester for student-athletes can be every bit as stressful and exhausting as practice.
?That game was so long ago,? Dixon said. ?But they also have academics, and I don?t know that really freshens you up, They have a lot of stuff going on right now ? they got finals in some classes this week, papers due and some projects and classes this weekend, too.
Pitt, like most teams from the major conferences, annually has played in a regular-season tournament, and that has often meant the Panthers get to play multiple neutral-site games.
This year, the Panthers only get one such game ? Dec. 20 at Madison Square Garden against Davidson. The event they are in, the Gotham Classic, is played mostly on home courts.
The Panthers (6-1) will have three home games as part of the Gotham Classic, starting tonight when they play host to Eastern Washington (5-4). Pitt also will play Morehead State (Sunday) and Western Carolina (Dec. 23) in home games over the next two weeks as part of the event.
Jamie Dixon said this was a good event for the Panthers this season because they had the neutral-site game against Gonzaga scheduled as well.
?You never know who you are going to get in these events,? Dixon said. ?Generally, [he would prefer to play more neutral-court games in these events], and that?s what we?ve done. Last year, we did Maui [three games there, one at the Petersen Center]. We have done them where we had four home games ? there are all different ways of doing it.
?We obviously like playing in New York, we have booked these a lot of years in advance, so you?re not sure who you will get, but it is important how good these opponents are, especially with the RPI. So we are fortunate because we have some good teams to play.
?These events, you want to be on national TV, you want to play good opponents and you?d like to play in a place where you recruit at and that?s obviously what makes this one attractive to us.?
The Eagles are coming off a 96-86 loss against Davidson in their first Gotham Classic game, but they should be one of the best nonconference teams the Panthers will play.
Last season, they won the Big Sky Conference tournament and made it into the NCAA tournament. The team looks a little different, however, after it lost some key players to graduation. But Dixon said they are going to be a tough matchup for the Panthers because they run a lot of good offense and can score from every position, making them hard to guard.
?They lost a really good player from last year, but they have some really good players coming back as well,? Dixon said. ?They play a little bit different than anyone we really have faced, they weave and like to spread it out on offense and try to get some favorable matchups. They are not huge, but they have five guys on the court who are almost interchangeable, and that makes it tough to match up with them.
?They are different in how they play because they try to space you out, then drive; they will, like I said, do some weave and even some dribble-drive offense. They have it going, they do a good job of getting international kids.?
Eastern Washington?s top player is senior guard Austin McBroom, who averages 18 points and 3.6 assists per game and scored 33 points against Davidson.
The Eagles are balanced as well with four players averaging at least 13.8 points per game. The team averages 84 points per game and has scored more than 100 twice and more than 80 five times.
The Panthers have had a nice break since their 100-47 blowout of Central Arkansas Sunday after Dixon gave them two days off. And that game became a blowout so quickly that Dixon was able to rest all of his starters and use his bench liberally. As for the rest . . .
Dixon isn?t so sure about that, though, because he said trying to finish a semester for student-athletes can be every bit as stressful and exhausting as practice.
?That game was so long ago,? Dixon said. ?But they also have academics, and I don?t know that really freshens you up, They have a lot of stuff going on right now ? they got finals in some classes this week, papers due and some projects and classes this weekend, too.
