Pitt is ranked No. 4 in the AP and coaches' poll and is No. 1 in the RPI, but the Panthers might not even get one of the four coveted double byes at next month's Big East tournament. For those who are unfamiliar with the new Big East tournament format, the top four teams in the standings get double byes and don't have to play a game until Thursday. Teams seeded five through eight get a bye and don't have to play until Wednesday. All other teams play on Tuesday.
Pitt (9-2) is currently tied for third place with Marquette, but Villanova (8-3) is dangerously lurking in fifth place. And the Wildcats own the tiebreaker over Pitt based on its victory over the Panthers in Philadelphia last month. Villanova also has the benefit of playing an easier schedule. The Wildcats play only two teams with winning records in league play the rest of the season -- Syracuse (on the road) and Providence (at home).
Pitt and Marquette have much tougher schedules. Of Pitt's final seven games, five have winning records in Big East play, including two matchups with No. 1 Connecticut.
Marquette has four games remaining with teams with winning Big East records, including a game against Pitt at the Petersen Events Center on March 4. It could come down to that game to decide which team gets the double bye.
Not that winning four games in four days to get to the championship game is in impossibility. Pitt has done it twice in the past three seasons. The Panthers won three games in three days before losing to Syracuse in the title game in 2006. And last season they won four games in four days to win the championship.
Posted
Feb 10 2009, 09:29 PM
by
Ray Fittipaldo