Panthers Basketball

The Pittsburgh Panthers are the athletics teams of the University of Pittsburgh (or the Pitt for short). The athletics director is Jeff Long. The teams mascot is a panther, and the major school colors are gold and dark blue.

From 2002 the Pittsburgh Panthers basketball team plays at the Petersen Events Center (the full name is the John M. and Gertrude E. Petersen Events Center). It was named after the retired president and chief executive officer of the Erie Insurance company. The Petersen Events Center is a multi-purpose arena, which seats more that twelve and a half thousand spectators. It is situated on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania. In 2006, the Sports Illustrated weekly American Sports Magazine held a survey among the Big East Conference Players. According to its results the Petersen Events Center was called the toughest place to play basketball. In 2007 the arena will host the games of the NCAA Womens Division I Basketball championship.

The Panthers participate in the NCAA (the National Collegiate Athletics Association) Division I. The Pittsburgh Panthers mens basketball team is a two-time National champion (1928 and 1930).

Apart from being national champions, the Pittsburgh Panthers basketball team has won eight Conference Championships. In the 1934-35 season they became the winners of the Eastern Intercollegiate Championship. In 1981 and 1982 they beat all the opponents and became the Eastern Eight Tournament Champions. Later, in 1987, 1988, and 2004 they won the title of the Big East Regular Season Champions. In 2002 Pittsburgh Panthers became the Big East Regular Season West Champions. The following season was marked with the teams victories in the Big East Tournament and Regular Season West Championships.

In all, the Pitts appeared eight times in the Big East Tournament Championship games and thrice in the Eastern Eight Tournament Championship games. The Pittsburgh Panthers participated in the NCAA tournaments 18 times, reached the NCAA Final Four (1941), the Elite Eight (1974), and the Sweet 16 (2002, 2003, and 2004).

The basketball team was an 8-time participant of the NIT (the National Invitation Tournament) competitions, which are college basketball tournaments held by the NCAA.

Nine Pittsburgh Panthers basketball players received the All-American status. They are: Charley Hyatt, Sykes Reed, Don Smith, Clarie Cribbs, Don Hennon, Billy Knight, Jerome Lane, Charles Smith, Brandon Knight. Charley Hyatt was awarded with the National Player of the Year title in 1930, and Ben Howland, the teams coach, became the National Coach of the Year on 2002.

In 2005 the Pittsburgh Panthers basketball team celebrated the hundred-year anniversary of the Pittsburgh Panthers basketball program.

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