Pitt's Big Men Dominate

Pitt finally used LeVon Kendall and Aaron Gray the way they should be used, in the paint. Pitt dominated in its second half victory over West Virgina, 80-66. The Panthers went on two separate 9-0 runs during the second half that were the keys to victory. Kendall and Gray did not allow a Mountaineer near the hoop, and they combined for 22 rebounds. Mike Cook and Ronald Ramon each hit key threes to give the Panthers the lead at the opportune times. Levance Fields added 14 points as the Panthers improved to 25-5 and 12-3 in the Big East. Despite the loss to Georgetown over the weekend Pitt put themselves into great position with just one game left in the season. If they beat Marquette in Milwaukee on Saturday and Georgetown loses to UCONN, the Cats are one and the Dogs are two. Unfortunately for the Panthers UCONN is struggling this year and except for Monday's loss Georgetown is considered one of the best teams in the nation. A win over Marquette guarantees the Panthers at least the second seed in the tournament when it begins next week. Seeds 1-4 get a first round bye, a good time to rest before March Madness. On a final note, hats off to Bruce Pearl and Pat Summitt for supporting one another's teams at Tennessee. Pearl painted his chest orange and was the "V" in a spelling of Lady Vols and Summitt donned a cheerleading uniform and sang "Rocky Top" the Tennessee fight song.