January 31, 2015

Column: Could Pitt still Dance?

by Dejan Kovacevic • Columns • Tags: Pitt

Mike Young goes high for two of his 16 points Saturday against Notre Dame. — GETTY

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

For one winter’s afternoon at the snow-capped Petersen Events Center, Pitt basketball was Pitt basketball again. And it was wonderful to watch.

Even better to experience to the fullest of one’s senses.

“This game … you could just feel it, man,” Mike Young, the Panthers’ sophomore center, would observe later.

The verb couldn’t have been better chosen. You could feel it.

Just like you used to.

You could feel the momentum, with shot after shot falling, building at both ends.

You could feel the opponent, No. 8 Notre Dame, buckling at least a bit.

You could feel the Oakland Zoo — and I mean this one literally, given my vantage point on the adjacent press row — bouncing bordering on throbbing, and this time it wasn’t with the requisite fan support but in genuine anticipation.

January 31, 2015

On location: Pitt 76, No. 8 Notre Dame 72

by Dejan Kovacevic • Game previews • Tags: Pitt

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

Getting ready for tipoff …

Game: Pitt (13-8, 3-5 ACC) vs. No. 8 Notre Dame (20-2, 8-1), 12:02 p.m., Petersen Events Center

TV, radio: WTAE (local), ACC Network (national), ESPN3 (online), 93.7 The Fan

Online: GameTracker / Multimedia / Official game notes

January 27, 2015

Virginia Tech 70, Pitt 67, OT

by Dejan Kovacevic • Game previews • Tags: Pitt

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

Getting ready for tipoff …

Game: Pitt (13-7, 3-4 ACC) vs. Virginia Tech (8-11, 0-6), Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, Va.

TV, radio: ESPNU (national), 93.7 The Fan

Online: GameTracker / Multimedia / Official game notes

January 27, 2015

Tuesday 12 Qs: Fleury, Liz, Lemon, Pat, Pats

by Dejan Kovacevic • Tuesday 12 Qs • Tags: Penguins, Pirates, Pitt, Steelers, Winnipeg Jets

Marc-Andre Fleury squares up during a two-on-one drill Monday at Consol. — DEJAN KOVACEVIC

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

Welcome to Tuesday 12 Qs, our chat that takes place each week at 9 a.m. — a new time — and offers you a chance to carry the conversation.

The earlier start is happening in large part because this file was getting buried too quickly, I thought, by going up in the afternoon. This buys more time atop the site, as well as more time for Qs to be submitted by going up at midnight.

Use the comments below to submit an entry. No more than one per person, please. Submit early if you prefer, and I’ll pick from that batch to get rolling, then monitor new entries once we go live. All topics welcome, as always.

UPDATE 9 a.m.: And off we go …

Acorrie2011: DK, what do you really think of the Penguins’ new coaching staff thus far? If they continue to stay the course currently taken, do you think they have a chance to make a Cup run? I’d obviously love to keep the hope, but if they don’t raise their compete level, I think the Pens will be lucky to make it past the first two rounds.

DK: In any piece I write or speak publicly, I’m telling you what I ‘really’ think of something. I feel compelled to start right there, because your phrasing is something I hear from readers a lot and, fair or not, I kind of take it as a suggestion that I’m not usually telling you what I ‘really’ think.

January 25, 2015

No. 10 Louisville 80, Pitt 68

by Dejan Kovacevic • Game previews • Tags: Pitt

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

Getting ready for tipoff …

Game: Pitt (13-6, 3-3 ACC) vs. No. 10 Louisville 80

TV, radio: CBS (national), 93.7 The Fan

Online: GameTracker / Multimedia / Official game notes

January 20, 2015

Tuesday 12 Qs: Adams, Berube, Scherzer, Wright

by Dejan Kovacevic • Tuesday 12 Qs • Tags: Penguins, Pirates, Pitt, Steelers

The Wells Fargo Center is home to two hugely successful major pro franchises. — GETTY

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

PHILADELPHIA — Welcome to Tuesday 12 Qs, our chat that takes place each week at 2 p.m. and offers you a chance to carry the conversation. This edition will take place live from my Starbucks of choice in South Philly, a few blocks away from the Flyers’ home at Wells Fargo Center. I just got done covering the teams’ respective morning skates, and I’ll be back there tonight to cover Penguins-Flyers with a full column, but all topics are welcome, as always.

Use the comments below to submit an entry. No more than one per person, please. Submit early if you prefer, and I’ll pick from that batch to get rolling, then monitor new entries once we go live.

And if any subscribers want to stop by once the chat is done, around 3 p.m., I’ll still be here and would be delighted to buy the coffee.

UPDATE 2 p.m.: Away we go …

DerekR: With a healthy Patric Hornqvist and Blake Comeau, do you think this team has enough for a deep playoff run? They still seem short one quality defenseman and need help badly on the fourth line. Killing penalties and winning faceoffs is a big part of an effective fourth line, but they have to be able to contribute some offense. Look at teams like LA, Chicago, the Rangers, the Islanders … all with much stronger fourth lines than the Penguins that can chip in 10-15 goals in a season, versus the paltry three goals from Marcel Goc and Craig Adams.

DK: We love to vilify the bottom of a roster, whether it’s the fourth line in hockey, the 53rd man in football or the 25th man in baseball. It’s easy. They’re dispensable.

January 19, 2015

No. 4 Duke 79, Pitt 65

by Dejan Kovacevic • Game previews • Tags: Pitt

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

Getting ready for tipoff …

Game: Pitt (13-5, 3-2 ACC) vs. No. 4 Duke (15-2, 3-2 ACC), 7:02 p.m., Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, N.C.

TV, radio: ESPN (national), ESPN3 (online), 93.7 The Fan

Online: GameTracker / Multimedia / Official game notes

January 19, 2015

Video podcast: ‘Showdown’ on Blount, Packers

by Dejan Kovacevic • Podcasts • Tags: Penguins, Pirates, Pitt, Steelers

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

Here’s video of the opening segment of KDKA-TV’s ‘#1 Cochran Sports Showdown‘ late Sunday night, this covering the NFL’s conference championship games.

Click the above link for all four of the show’s segments, which covered Penguins, Pirates and Pitt.

January 17, 2015