The West Virginia Mountaineers face off with the Pitt Panthers in a game of two teams that are on separate paths. Who gets the win in the revival of this series?
TV schedule: Saturday, December 9, 8:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2
Arena: Pedersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
In the Old Big East conference, there were many hard-fought battles within the league. One of those was the annual Backyard Brawl games between Pittsburgh (5-4) and No. 18 West Virginia (8-1). The Mountaineers lead the all-time series 96-88 in what always was considered a football based rivalry, but the games on the hardwood were certainly just as good and tough.
The last game between these two was in 2012, where WVU won 66-48. In terms of the scheme, Bob Huggins and the team are basically the same in 2017. The team is ranked in the top-25 in defensive rating after nine games and is coming off a defensive slugfest versus No. 15 Virginia, 68-61. Javon Carter was on triple-double watch, with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, all while playing all 40 minutes. Lamont West dropped 22 in the game as well.
The Virginia win was the eighth straight win after getting destroyed in the opener to Texas A&M. With Esa Ahmad out until January, the senior leader Carter has stepped up offensively, averaging 19.4 ppg and 5.7 apg, both tops on the team. Daxter Miles has improved his game, scoring 14.6 ppg a night.
Related Story: Kevin Stallings saves job with win over Santa Barbara
Pittsburgh is vastly different from just a couple of years ago, with former head coach Jamie Dixon going back to his alma mater TCU and the entire roster turned over. The talent drop off is noticeable, with a 1-4 start to the season, including a home defeat to Montana. Since then, the Panthers have won four straight, albeit to little-known schools.
One of them was Mount Saint Mary’s, who Pitt needed overtime to beat after surrendering 49 second-half points. Ryan Luther, the lone returner from a year ago, had his worst game offensively, scoring just four points on 2/9 shooting. He did pull down a career-high 16 rebounds, eight of them being offensive. Freshman guard Marcus Carr was the star of the game, going for a season high of 23 points. After a slow start, he’s been averaging 19.0 ppg the last three games. He’s one of four Panthers currently averaging double figures for second year coach Kevin Stallings.
When looking at these two teams, there’s a glaring issue Pittsburgh will have to deal with against this difficult defense of West Virginia. The Panthers have been out-rebounded for the season and just don’t have much size. The Mountaineers aren’t the biggest team either, but currently are ranked in the top 10 in grabbing offensive boards, thanks to a collective effort of everyone that takes the court for them. Even if they don’t shoot well on the first shot, this game could be one where they get a bunch of second chance opportunities.
Next: Big East power rankings (Nov. 29-Dec. 6)
Even in a down year for Pitt, this game was circled on the calendar and will fill up the seats in what’s so far been a historically bad year for attendance so far at the Pedersen Events Center. For West Virginia, this is a chance to continue the momentum of the past few weeks, and, considering the issues that the perennial Big 12 champs Kansas has, WVU may be primed to take them down. A loss in the Steel City could dampen those hopes.
Prediction: West Virginia 84 – Pittsburgh 69