Blaznasty: What ever happened to Chris Taft?

Ray Fittipaldo: As far as I know, Chris is rehabilitating a back injury that caused him to be cut by Golden State last year. I tried to get in touch with Chris for a story last summer, but his family did not return phone calls.

doug_s: Is Jamie Dixon the leading candidate for coach of the year? What a special job he has done this year and he always seems to squeeze out every ounce of talent and huslte out of his players. I hope Mike Tomlin was taking notes and then should pass them along John Russell.

Ray Fittipaldo: Given what has transpired in the past two weeks, Dixon has to be the leading candidate for Big East coach of the year. If the Panthers continue to play at this level (let's say they go 13-5 in conference play), he should be a top candidate for national coach of the year. He seems to find ways to get players to realize every bit of their potential.

Blaznasty: Who do you think will win the Big East regular season crown and how many teams do you see making the Big Dance in March?

Ray Fittipaldo: I still believe it will be Georgetown, although the Hoyas will be pushed by Marquette and maybe another team or two. This is not shaping up as a banner year in the Big East. I'll guess six or seven teams get in. The Big East's problem is that it has so many teams bunched in the middle that knock each other off. The end result is you have a bunch of teams with 9-9, 10-8 or 8-10 conference records. That parity hurts the league when it comes time for the NCAA selection committee to choose a 65-team field.

Gus: Ray, do the win's against Duke and Georgetown put Coach Dixon in an elite level nationally?

Ray Fittipaldo: I think he's been an elite coach. People who follow college basketball understand that he is an outstanding coach. I don't think one win against Georgetown opened people's eyes. They were already open.

Blaznasty: Is there going to be a huge let down by the Panthers on Saturday in Cincy?

Ray Fittipaldo: You always have that worry coming off a big win. Cincinnati is not a bad team. The Bearcats are 3-2 in Big East play. They are much-improved from last season. Cincinnati is prone to foul trouble with their big men. If DeJuan Blair can stay out of foul trouble, he could be the difference.

Blaznasty: The upcoming schedule for Pitt is pretty favorable until the trip to UCONN, which is always a war ... what do you think the record will be in the next 4 games? I think 3-1 would be outstanding.

Ray Fittipaldo: You have games at Cincinnati and St. John's followed by home game against Rutgers and Villanova before Connecticut. Pitt needs to go 3-1 in that four-game stretch. The Panthers are good enough to win one of those two road games and win both of those home games. Rutgers is not any good and the Panthers should have beaten Villanova on the road in the Big East opener.

Demetrius_Gore: Why does Pitt struggle so much in the first half of games? They play much better in second half with exception of Dayton game, which was all around bad.

Ray Fittipaldo: I've asked that question of Dixon and the players and have never really received an answer that explains it. Dixon does well at making halftime adjustments. Maybe it's not Pitt playing poorly in the first half as much as the Panthers playing really well in the second halves of games. You can't really say Pitt played poorly in the first half against Georgtown on Monday. After all, they were leading the No. 5 team in the country, 27-26.

Blaznasty: Any comments on the decision to put in McGhee during the end of the first half to bang with Hibbert? I thought it was absolutely brilliant given the Hoyas were not close to the bonus and it saved Blair from a ticky tack foul.

Ray Fittipaldo: Yeah that was a good move. I would have liked McGhee to play more solid on defense and not have to foul Hibbert. I think he picked up four fouls in about three minutes of playing time. McGhee played well defesnively against Kentrell Gransberry of SOuth Florida. I was expecting him to do a better job against Hibbert. I was disappointed Hibbert got position so easily against him.

Blaznasty: You could tell Jamie Dixon was very emotional after the Georgetown win in his interview with Jay Bilas. Do you think Dixon realizes how good of a coaching job he has done so far this year?

Ray Fittipaldo: It's not out of character for Dixon to get emotional after games. He's just coaching the guys he has at his disposal and getting the most out of them. If he doesn't realize it, just about everyone else who follows college basketball does.

Demetrius_Gore: Why doesnt Pitt try to start up a series with Xavier? It would be a good non-conference game and I would think Sean Miller would be happy to play Pitt in a home and home

Ray Fittipaldo: Pitt already has a home-and-home with Duquesne, another Atlantic 10 school. I'm not sure Pitt needs to play Xavier in a home-and-home series. You saw what happened when the Panthers accepted a home-and-home against Dayton. The Flyers were all juiced up and handed the Panthers a 25-point loss. Dixon can thank Jeff Long for that one. Long arranged for that series because he wanted to play a game near his hometown of Kettering, Ohio in the holiday season. I'd rather see Pitt play UCLA or Kentucky in a home-and-home than another Atlantic 10 school.

Blaznasty: I thought it was great for Blair's confidence to take it right at Hibbert on the first possesion of the game. I think he has a little Elton Brand in him. Do you think Blair will end up staying 4 years at Pitt?

Ray Fittipaldo: I think Blair will stay three years at least and maybe four. He still has a long way to go in his development. He's already a very good college player. He will be a great payer in another year or two. The NBA is something altogether different. I think he has a shot to get drafted down the road, but it's no sure thing given his height.

Demetrius_Gore: What are the specific roles on Dixon's assistant coaches? Is it true that Pat Sandle doesn't really recruit much and is more of an X's and O's type of coach?

Ray Fittipaldo: That's true. Each staff is allowed two coaches to go on the road to recruit. Orlando Antigua and Tom Herrion handle those duties for Dixon. Sandle only handles some on-campus recruiting and puts together scouting reports on future oppoennts. Dixon has Sandle, Antigua and Herrion break down video on future opponents and each is responsible for several opponent game plans throughout the season. Herrion, a fomrer head coach at the College of Charleston, is a valuable asset for Dixon when it comes to in-game coaching.

Blaznasty: What do you think helped Ronald "Razor" Ramon turn around his game in the past few weeks? Was it a health issue before with his shoulder or did Dixon get on him in practices?

Ray Fittipaldo: Probably just getting acclimated to playing point guard on a full-time basis. The Villanova game was his second game as the team's point guard. It was on the road and against an opponent that liked to pressure in the back court. Ramon will be tested again. It's always easier to press at home, so we'll see how Ramon handles some road games in the future.

Blaznasty: I think you mentioned that Dixon would only leave Pitt for a few jobs. What jobs do you think Dixon would consider taking besides the Pitt job?

Ray Fittipaldo: Probably a few jobs on the west coast closer to his family. Maybe a high-profile job or two in the south. I serisouly think there are only maybe 5 or 6 schools that are threats to take Dixon away. Unless one of those prime jobs come open I don't think Pitt fans have to worry much.

Blaznasty: Blair needs a nickname ... "Grizzly Blair"?

Ray Fittipaldo: I saw that Dick "Hoops" Weiss from the New York Daily News wrote that in his Pitt-Georgetown game story Tuesday morning. We'll have to see if it sticks.

Brian: Chris Taft is currently playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the National Basketball Developmental league. He actually played pretty well in a D-League showcase game last night (14 pts 5 rbs in 17 min). Do you think that Pitt will ever challenge for a National Championship without Dixon ever having recruited a NBA quality guard that can break down the defense when they play against much more athletic teams? I don't believe that the ceiling for all Jaimie Dixon's teams will always be the Sweet Sixteen considering that they have never had reliable scoring threats on the perimeter against some of the better non-conference defenders.

Ray Fittipaldo: That's for the update. Fields is pretty good at breaking opposing guards down. I'm not sure you're going to get a better point guard in your program than Fields. Maybe three or four teams out there have a better point guard than Fields. Can Dixon recruit better? Sure. But he gets the most out of the recruits he does land.

Blaznasty: How far can this team go in March?

Ray Fittipaldo: Depends upon Fields' status. If he comes back and is 100 percent healthy the Panthers can make a nice run. The important thing to do when he is out is win games. The more games they win the better seed they'll have in the NCAAs.

Ray Fittipaldo: Thanks for all the great question this week. We'll do it next week and discuss the Cincinnati and St. John's games.