...In Which I Exhibit Hesitation at Pitt's NCAA Chances and Feign Outrage at My Dukies

The look on Brad Wanamaker's face is emblematic of my feelings about Pitt's chances to finally make a Final Four...

I love me some Pitt. I really do. Pitt basketball is the epitome of the Big East hoops aesthetic: tough defense, physical play and a grind-it-out mentality that has helped them become one of the most successful teams in one of the NCAA's best and deepest conferences.

But that depth, combined with the fact that most if not all Big East teams play a physical style, can be a real disadvantage for them in the actual NCAA Tournament. Referees in the tourney don't let Big East teams play the way they've played the entire season. Or at least, not without calling a foul every five seconds. On top of that, Big East teams beat the piss out of one another to win the conference tournament, which to my mind leaves them worn-out when the first-round games come up. For example, UConn had to play five games in five days to win the Big East tourney. Barring a miraculous continuation of Kemba Walker's seemingly unflappable stamina, I just don't see them going very deep.

But what irks me even more is the exclusion of my alma mater, Duquesne, from the NIT (Not Invited Tournament). When they went out in the first round of the A-10 tournament, I figured their NCAA chances were pretty much sunk. But you gotta be sh*tting me that, at 18-12, and 10-6 in the A-10, they couldn't get an NIT invitation?

Are you really telling me that the Dukies aren't as good as, say.... say... uh... alright... I looked at all the bottom seeds in the NIT, and they are all better than the Dukies.

Dammit.

Well, I guess I'll just have to settle for taking a step forward this year, and leading the NCAA in assists per game (18).

I'll likely check back in later today, when I've finished agonizing over my brackets.