(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
Setting:
The TD Bank North Garden in Boston, Massachusetts is the scene for a Sweet Sixteen matchup between Sean Miller’s four-seed Xavier Musketeers (27-7) and Jamie Dixon’s one-seed Pittsburgh Panthers (30-4).
Plot:
Xavier looked ripe for the picking after limping to the finish line, going 5-5 in the month prior to the NCAA Tournament, and a trip to Boise for the opening round seemed to doom the X-Men for an early-round loss.
But since then, the Musketeers have regained their swagger with wins over Portland State (by a score of 77-59) and Wisconsin (60-49). Xavier now has a neutral-court record of 6-2 and is 23-2 when holding teams to 70 points or less.
After losing in the opening round of the Big East soiree, the Panthers triumphed over East Tennessee State (72-62) and Oklahoma State (84-76). They're 27-2 when they outrebound opponents.
Subplot:
Sean Miller knows a thing or two about Pittsburgh basketball. After leading the Panthers to NCAA appearances in '88, '89, and '91, Miller was named to the university’s All-Centennial Team. He left campus number one all-time in assists (744), though he since has been surpassed by Brandon Knight (784).
Current Panther point guard LeVance Fields is third with 633.
Flashback:
Pittsburgh holds a 3-2 advantage in the all-time series. The last time the two schools faced off, Pitt took a 94-76 decision at the Puerto Rico Shootout during the '98-'99 season.
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