Backyard Brawl Part II (Hardwood Style)

No. 5 West Virginia (19-4, 8-3) looks to avoid losing consecutive games for the first time all season at the Petersen Events Center in tonight’s 9 p.m. battle against No. 25 Pittsburgh (18-6, 7-4).

WVU expects a normally hostile environment at a venue where Pitt has lost just once in 14 tries this season. No current Mountaineer has ever won at Pitt, while WVU has only won once in six tries at ‘The Pete’.

West Virginia earned a 70-51 victory over the Panthers just 10 days ago at the WVU Coliseum. While the final score suggested a rout, the Mountaineers held a meager 43-41 advantage with 10 minutes remaining in the game. The contest was also marred by the poor behavior of WVU’s fans, who threw things on the court and later hit Pitt assistant coach Tom Herrion in the face with a coin.

Here are a few keys to tonight’s 180th edition of the basketball Backyard Brawl.

• Bench Production- While Casey Mitchell gave West Virginia 12 unexpected points in Monday’s 82-75 setback to Villanova, the Mountaineer bench has been a mystery this season. At times, Mitchell, John Flowers and Joe Mazzulla have been steady reserves. The addition of freshman forward Deniz Kilicli also helps WVU get more production from its bench. Pitt swingman Gilbert Brown was held scoreless in the teams’ earlier meeting this season. Pitt will need production from Brown (10.8 points per game) to have a chance tonight.
• Rebounding Battle- The Mountaineers held a substantial rebounding advantage (42-30) in their earlier victory over the Panthers this year. However, a smaller Villanova team was able to out-rebound WVU 38-30 on Monday night. Both WVU and Pitt are extremely physical teams that take a lot of pride in rebounding. Whoever holds the advantage on the glass tonight will have a leg up on their opponent.
• Da’sean Butler- WVU’s star player and leading scorer was only 2-for-12 in Monday’s loss to the Wildcats. Butler averages 17.1 points per game, but he has struggled throughout his career at Pitt. The Mountaineers will need their star player to come up big to earn their first win at Pitt since 2005.

Prediction- WVU: 69 Pitt: 65