What MATTers : 2014-2015 a Year to Remember for Pitt Basketball

What MATTers: 2014-2015 a Year to Remember for Pitt Basketball -
The 2014-2015 season will be a year to remember for Pitt basketball. Boy, will it ever. Shattering expectations, 20 victories, and a berth in March Madness are just a few accomplishments. Wait a minute. Pitt didn't play in the NCAA Tournament! What team am I speaking of? That's right, Pitt women's basketball. Your 2014-2015 Lady Panthers had quite a successful campaign. Did you know the Ladies were selected to finish dead last in the ACC preseason polls? Despite this, Pitt clawed its way to a 20-12 record, including 9-7 in conference play. Pitt subsequently earned an NCAA Tournament berth. I know, I know, a wild dream, right? The Lady Panthers will remember this season for some time because of these achievements. Head coach Susie McConnell-Serio deserves a tremendous amount of respect. Her ability to guide the team to the postseason, after the team went 20-41 in its past two seasons, is remarkable. That is why she was a Naismith semi-finalist for Women's Coach of the Year. Job well done, Susie. Be proud. Be loud. Because you earned it and your players earned it. Speaking of players, Pitt senior G Brianna Kiesel emerged as the team's go to player. I'm sure you are familiar with her because Kiesel averaged 18.4 points per game, to go with 5.0 rebounds per game, and 4.5 assists per. There is little doubt in her fantastic basketball ability. Kiesel was named the USWBA National Player of the Week, during her collegiate career, a first in program history. Brianna also netted herself in supreme company as a selection to First Team All-ACC and All-ACC Academic Team. The latter, for the second year in a row. Kiesel and McConnell-Serio were the key figures in Pitt's turnaround, but the underclassmen cannot be ignored for their contributions. Incoming freshman Alysia Bugg, Stasha Carey, and Yacine Diop all aided Kiesel in scoring. Diop (9.4), Carey (9.1), and Bugg (6.0) finished as the third, fourth, and fifth scorers, respectively. For the women, it was a total team effort, from the top down, which produced a year to remember.
Now unfortunately for the men's team, the outcome of 2014-2015 was the polar opposite. As us Panther fans know, there is not much to discuss, other than the season was rather uneventful. Jamie Dixon failed to lead his team to a spot in March Madness for only the second time. The Pitt men failed to win 20 games, too. As a result, Pitt sealed its fate to the NIT, and was upset by George Washington in the opening round at Petersen Events Center. I do not need to go any further here. All we as fans can hope is there will be success come the fall. What might've been, what could've been, make 2014-2015 a year to remember for the men.
For comparison purposes, the attached table provides a side-by-side analysis of the 2014-2015 season for the men and women's teams. The contrasts are reflected in each category. The table provides insight as to why 2014-2015 was a season to remember for both teams.
Pitt Men Pitt Women.pdf