As Pittsburgh head coach Ben Howland prepared to address his team following a victory over Syracuse yesterday, thoughts of its accomplishment and admiration for his players filled his mind.

But when Howland opened his mouth to speak, a funny thing happened — nothing came out.

“I was speechless,” Howland said. “I can never remember being speechless.”

Perhaps because Howland sits in first place for the first time in his three-year tenure at Pitt. Or maybe because it’s been 11 years since the Panthers compiled 20 wins.

The Panthers, picked by the Big East coaches to finish sixth in the conference, now control the Big East West Division following a 75-63 comeback win over Syracuse (18-7, 7-4 Big East).

On Jan. 22, the Panthers (21-4, 9-3) made a grand entrance onto the stage of top Big East teams with a 72-57 drubbing of Syracuse. Yesterday, they may have moved to the center of that stage by winning on the road late in the season in front of 21,935 at the Carrier Dome.

“There are a number of teams in our conference, I would say eight or nine, that could go deep into the NCAA Tournament,” Howland said. “They’re definitely one of them. I’ve got nothing but the greatest respect for what they’ve been able to accomplish here. To be able to beat them on their home floor is just unbelievable because it doesn’t happen very often.”

Pitt has beaten a number of the teams Howland alluded to. Georgetown, Rutgers, Miami, St. John’s, Boston College and Villanova have all fallen to the Panthers this season.

“We’re just on a roll, and it’s big for us,” guard Julius Page said. “To finish on top, you’ve got to win on the road.”

They’ve done that too, compiling a 4-2 conference road record. That includes victories at Georgetown, BC, Rutgers and now Syracuse.

Yesterday, Pitt won as it has all season; with help from both ends of the bench. There’s no question point guard Brandin Knight is the Panthers’ leader, but yesterday the Pitt bench gave the starters 30 points of support.

“We have great depth,” Knight said. “Those guys, they come in and they give us a big lift all the time.”

Knight, who scored 16 points and dished out nine assists, didn’t take it personally when the Big East coaches picked his squad to finish in the middle of the conference. He wouldn’t go so far as to say that he predicted Pitt would be leading the pack with four games left, but Knight knew his team would come ready every night.

Now, the rest of the Big East knows it too.

“I thought any time we’d go out there we’d have a chance,” Knight said. “You just take it one game at a time. Anything can happen, and right now we feel like we’re at the top of our game.”

The Panthers picked a good time to be there. The Big East Tournament begins March 6, with the top two teams in each division earning a bye. With 21 wins, the Panthers should be locks for the NCAA Tournament barring a disaster.

But all of that is for later. There is no time for extended celebrations. A trip to Morgantown, W.Va., for a matchup with the Mountaineers looms Saturday.

“Hey, we’re just worried about the next game,” Howland said. “That’s all we’re thinking about.”

Howland doesn’t need to tell his team, as Knight spoke in similar terms. Perhaps that’s why Howland said nothing after the game.

“I’m really fortunate to coach kids like this,” Howland said. “It makes it easy. They have great heart. They play really hard. The chemistry, the unselfishness, I can’t say enough about these players.”

-30-

Published on February 10, 2002 at 12:00 pm