Ross Jr.: PSU shows progress in loss – PittsburghLIVE.com:
“UNIVERSITY PARK — Obligatory disappointment at another Penn State men’s basketball loss to Pitt was tinged with relief Saturday.
“Pitt now has beaten its intrastate foe four consecutive times. But where the previous three wins had come by an average of just over 28 points a game, this latest installment yesterday in the Bryce Jordan Center was by a relatively competitive 84-71 score.
“This is progress.
“Penn State had even managed to lead, briefly, 30-29, as late at 5:25 before halftime. That Pitt responded to minor adversity to build the advantage back to nine by halftime, or that the 11th-ranked Panthers kept the Lions at arms-length through the second half, didn’t obscure totally signs of obvious improvement for Ed DeChellis in his second season of the rebuilding campaign at Penn State.
” ‘We competed. We thought we could win,’ DeChellis said. ‘When you’ve been waxed three or four years in a row, and you’re trying to convince guys for three days of practice that you can play with the 11th-ranked team in the country, that’s just not all snap, snap, ‘OK, we kind of believe you coach.’ ‘ …”