ESPN’s communications department reached out to me over at SB Nation Pitt blog Cardiac Hill to provide another host for a Q&A – this time about tonight’s Backyard Brawl. Their excellent analyst and former coach Fran Fraschilla was the willing participant and he talked about the game, coaching, and what Pitt needs to do to win:
Cardiac Hill: Give us your keys to victory for Pitt for the game.
Fran Fraschilla: Create scoring opportunities off the offensive glass. They are rebounding 44% of their own misses, so even if their outside shooting has been off a little recently they can still score around the rim. Get Gilbert Brown and Brad Wannamaker going again offensively. Though Pitt is not known as a transition team, they were averaging almost 80 points a game early in conference play. Contain Joe Mazzulla and Casey Mitchell from attacking the paint off the dribble. When they are effective at getting into the lane, Kevin Jones and Casey Mitchell get easier scoring opportunities.
For the rest of Fran’s Analysis, check out the full Q&A over at Cardiac Hill.