PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It speaks to the special season there is so much concern over the Panthers first loss since January 21. Did Virginia Tech figure Pitt out? Did they provide a game plan for other teams?
“They certainly provided us with a lot of stuff that we need to work on to look and to see,” said Pitt head coach Jeff Capel. “I thought the mindset was really good when we got together and practiced.”
Pitt associate head coach Milan Brown told The Fan Morning Show the Hokies did a good job of stopping the Panthers drives and kick-outs for three pointers. Brown said, echoing what Capel said after the game on Saturday, they have to credit Virginia Tech for executing its game plan. Capel said they made Pitt pay for its lack of communication. He also pointed out he thought they did enough offensively to win the game even with those struggles, there were inconsistencies on defense they need to clean up.
“We didn’t change,” Brown said of overcoming the loss at practice on Sunday. “That’s the one thing that’s been good. Jeff hasn’t changed. We came in Sunday, watched the film, talked about what we did good and what we needed to improve on.”
“You could tell the guys were spry. Sometimes when you get kicked in the teeth it opens your eyes up again to say ‘let’s get a little more locked in like we were’. We are excited about the next opportunity in front of us.”
Next up
Panthers host Georgia Tech Tuesday night at 7p on 93.7 The Fan. Its record is a bit deceiving overall, 11-16, 3-13 in the ACC. However, the Yellow Jackets won against Virginia Tech last week and lost by a point at Wake Forest and held the lead with four minutes to go before losing at NC State.
“Really and truly if the ball bounces a different way here and there they could be on a five-game win streak,” Brown told The Fan Morning Show. “They’ve changed a little bit with their lineup, gone a little bit smaller. They’ve played even more zone that they’ve mixed in there. The smaller lineup has given them better ball handling and they are more athletic. It’s definitely going to be a challenge. It’s going to be a big-time fight on our hands. We can’t look past that.”
NCAA talk
Over the last couple of weeks, attention is growing with the Panthers program. Capel said the 19-win Panthers set out to focus on the task at hand. He feels they’ve done a good job of it. Capel also knows it’s hard for any teenager or 20-something to not be active on social media.
“It’s natural for guys to look, for the coaches to look,” Brown told 93.7 The Fan of NCAA Tournament speculation. “You understand it’s human nature. You are waiting to play a game at 5 o’clock and the other ACC game is at noon, you are going to watch.”
“You hear the chatter, but they’ve done a good job trying to block those things out. Have a singular focus and singular purpose about trying to take care of business in front of them.”
“I will say this. It is exciting and I’m glad that we are in the conversation to talk about. It means we are doing something good. We’ll take that part of it.”
Old man guards
The combined guards of Jamarius Burton, Nelly Cummings, Nike Sibande and Greg Elliott are not only old enough to drink, they’ve each been through a couple of elections in which they were eligible to vote. This is more common due to recent changes in the game, but it’s an unusual wealth of experience for Brown, who serves as the Panthers primary backcourt coach.
“My wife is a professor at Chatham and she works with some of the grad students at the doctoral program,” Brown told The Fan Morning Show. “It feels like that. It feels like you are working with actual graduates, people getting their doctorate. You don’t have to repeat a bunch of things. They understand and they actually have ideas as well.”
“That’s what’s been fun, you bounce some of the basketball information back and forth off of each other. They’ve been great with me and the rest of the staff because they are, in the basketball sense, grown men they are really able to gather knowledge from everyone.”