Team preview: Pittsburgh

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Former Pittsburgh coach Ben Howland certainly left some talent behind for replacement Jamie Dixon, but few could have envisioned the sort of rookie season Dixon posted a year ago. Dixon guided the Panthers to their third consecutive Big East regular-season title, third consecutive appearance in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen and a school-record 31 victories. Those accomplishments made him a no-brainer choice for conference coach of the year.

Dixon's 31 wins were the third-best, first-season win total in NCAA Division I history (only North Carolina's Bill Guthridge, who posted 34 victories in 1997-98, and Indiana State's Bill Hodges, who registered 33 in 1978-79, won more games in their first seasons).

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