By From the Archives

Published: March 20, 2009

BY BRIAN T. SMITH
BRISTOL HERALD COURIER
DAYTON, Ohio – East Tennessee State University men’s basketball coach Murry Bartow started preaching defense when the season began. Buccaneers assistant coach Scott Wagers helped Bartow spread the word. And the good work served the No. 16 seed Bucs well Friday afternoon as they nearly knocked off the No. 1 seed Pittsburgh Panthers in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
ETSU fell, 72-62, to Pitt Panthers in an East Region contest at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio, before a crowd of 12,499.
But not before the Buccaneers (23-11) wreaked a little havoc.
The Panthers (29-4) entered the contest as a heavy favorite and the No. 4-ranked team in the nation. However, ETSU’s full-court press defense – dubbed the “black press” and a work-in-progress since the season began – made Pitt look more like a beatable, forgettable 16 seed than an NCAA championship contender.
The Panthers committed 13 first-half turnovers and 18 in the game. The Bucs’ constant defensive attack disrupted Pittsburgh’s slow, methodical offensive sets and left one of the Big East’s best looking flustered and frustrated.
“We really played our game,” ETSU senior guard Courtney Pigram said. “We’ve been playing like that most of the season. We press a lot. And we like to get the game going up and down.”
A defensive mindset aided the Bucs on offense. East Tennessee State recorded 25 second-chance points to Pitt’s seven, as the Buccaneers sucked up loose balls and up-for-grabs rebounds with grit and hustle.
The Panthers ended the game with a 47-44 rebounding advantage. But the mark was a small victory for ETSU – Pittsburgh entered the contest as the No. 2 team in the nation in rebounding margin (9.9).
“We just came in looking to hit the glass hard,” Buccaneers senior forward Greg Hamlin said. “We heard they weren’t a very good defensive rebounding team, so we just tried to attack the glass and get second chances.”
ETSU did. Hamlin pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds and Bucs freshman forward Isiah Brown grabbed eight. Mike Smith (eight rebounds) and Tommy Hubbard (seven) also helped lift East Tennessee State’s chances.
Panthers senior forward Sam Young said Pitt turned the ball over too much and rushed shots. He attributed Pittsburgh’s uncharacteristic sloppy play to the pressure his team felt from the Bucs’ press defense.
“It was good,” Hamlin said. “[We] really just came out and wanted to play hard. That’s what we do every game. We just tried to continue with this game. We knew it would help us out.”

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