2011–12 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team

American college basketball season 2011–12 Pitt men's basketball 2011–12 Pitt women's basketball 2011–12 Pittsburgh Panthers women's basketball team March 2026 August 2023 Basketball 2011–12 Pittsburgh Panthers Pitt Panthers wordmark.svg 150 Big East Conference (1979–2013) Big East 22–17 5–13 Jamie Dixon 9th Pat Sandle 11th Brandin Knight 4th Bill Barton 1st Petersen Events Center(Capacity: 12,508) College Basketball Invitational ChampionsPhilly Hoop Group Classic Champions CBI Champions The 2011–12 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Their head coach was Jamie Dixon, who was in his ninth year as head coach at Pittsburgh and 13th overall at the university. The team played its home games in the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and are members of the Big East Conference. Pitt entered the 2011–12 season picked to finish fourth in the Big East Conference,http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11293/1183455-142-0.stm https://web.archive.org/web/20171116132842/http://www.post-gazette.com/Pitt/2011/10/20/Pitt-s-Gibbs-gets-top-preseason-honor/stories/201110200411 dead November 16, 2017 Pitt's Gibbs gets top preseason honor Ray Fittipaldo Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 2011-10-20 2011-10-22 ranked #11 in the pre-season ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll,http://pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_762885.html Pitt hoops ranked No. 11 in coaches' poll John Grupp Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 2011-10-20 2011-10-22 https://archive.today/20130131124752/http://pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_762885.html 2013-01-31 dead and with the Big East pre-season player of the year, Ashton Gibbs.http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/college/basketball/pitt_gibbs_have_final_in_mind_9RR1gD6MMt5obILRYCdz6O Pitt's Gibbs named preseason Big East Player of Year Tim Bontemps New York Post 2011-10-20 2011-10-22 They finished the season 22–17, 5–13 in Big East play for a disappointing 13th-place finish. They lost in the second round of the Big East Basketball tournament to Georgetown. They were invited to the 2012 College Basketball Invitational where they advanced to the best of three game finals series against Washington State. They defeated the Cougars 2 games to 1 to be the 2012 CBI Champions. Outlook The Pittsburgh Panthers finished the 2010–11 season as Big East Regular Season champions with 28–6, 15–3. They received a number 1 seed in the 2011 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, but were upset by eventual national runner-up Butler in the third round. Finishing at No. 12 in the final Coaches' Poll, Pitt returns two starters, including 2011–12 Big East Pre-season Player of the Year, Ashton Gibbs, as well as two of its top four scores, 41% of its scoring, and 45% of its rebounding. Four freshman joined the team, including McDonald's High School All-American Khem Birch.http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/pitt/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/2011-12MBBProspectus.pdf Pitt Basketball 2011-12 Preseason Prospectus University of Pittsburgh 2011 1–2 2011-10-22 2014-12-22 https://web.archive.org/web/20141222063952/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/pitt/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/2011-12MBBProspectus.pdf dead At the Big East Conference media day on October 19, 2011, Pitt was selected by a vote of the league's coaches to finish fourth in the Big East Conference receiving one first place votes. Pitt guard Ashton Gibbs received preseason Player of the Year and first-team all-conference selections. The Panthers are ranked 11th in the nation in the preseason USA Today Coaches' Poll. Coaching staff Name Position Year at Pittsburgh Alma Mater (Year) Jamie Dixon Head coach 13th (9th as Head Coach) TCU (1987) Pat Sandle Assistant coach 11th San Francisco State (1987) Brandin Knight Assistant coach 6th University of Pittsburgh (2005) Bill Barton Assistant coach 1st Salem State (1989) Brian Regan Director of Basketball Operations 5th Saint Vincent (1988) Jordan Marks Video Coordinator 3rd University of Pittsburgh (2008) Jason Richards Graduate Manager 2nd Davidson (2008) Tony Salesi Athletic Trainer 26th University of Pittsburgh (1980) Recruiting 2011 Pitt Recruiting Class Signees. no no 2011 Khem Birch forward Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec Notre Dame Prep 6 8 210 9/30/2010 5 5 97 Malcolm Gilbert center Smyrna, Delaware Academy of the New Church 6 11 220 8/23/2010 4 3 95 Durand Johnson shooting guard/small forward Baltimore, Maryland Brewster Academy 6 6 190.5 8/16/2010 4 3 92 John Johnson point guard/shooting guard Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Girard College 6 1 166.5 9/17/2009 3 3 91 2011 Pittsburgh Basketball Commit List: 2011 Pittsburgh College Basketball Recruiting Commits College Basketball Recruiting Schools: Pittsburgh Panthers 2011 pittsburgh 141 221 12 20 15 2011-10-22 yes Roster 2011–12 Pitt Panthers basketball roster 2011 Pittsburgh Panthers y yes Isaiah Epps 2 G 6 2 185 FR Plainfield Hargrave Military Academy/Plainfield HS yes Ashton Gibbs y 12 G 6 2 190 SR Scotch Plains, New Jersey Seton Hall Prep Malcolm Gilbert 33 C 6 11 235 FR Smyrna, Delaware Academy of the New Church Durand Johnson 5 G/F 6 6 190 FR Baltimore Brewster Academy/Lake Clifton John Johnson 4 G 6 1 175 FR Philadelphia Girard College J. J. Moore 44 F 6 6 205 SO Brentwood, New York South Kent School/Brentwood HS Aron Nwankwo 15 C 6 7 205 SO Baltimore Baltimore City College Lamar Patterson y 21 G/F 6 5 229 SO Lancaster, Pennsylvania St. Benedict's Prep/J.P. McCaskey H.S. yes Nick Rivers 14 G 6 0 180 SR Phoenix, Arizona Brophy College Prep Nasir Robinson 35 F 6 5 225 SR Chester, Pennsylvania Chester HS Dante Taylor 11 F 6 9 240 JR Greenburgh, New York National Christian Academy (MD) Travon Woodall 1 G 5 11 195 JR Brooklyn, New York –Paterson, New Jersey St. Anthony HS yes Cameron Wright 3 G 6 4 205 FR Cleveland Benedictine HS yes Talib Zanna y 42 F 6 9 230 SO Kaduna, Nigeria Bishop McNamara HS (MD) yes Jamie Dixon (TCU ) Pat Sandle (San Francisco State) Brandin Knight (Pittsburgh) Bill Barton (Salem State) http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/pitt-m-baskbl-mtt.html 2011-10-22 Note: Freshman Khem Birch (#24, 6 ft 9 in, 220 lb), at the time Pitt's starting center, left the team on December 16. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11351/1197599-175.stm https://web.archive.org/web/20120107141904/http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11351/1197599-175.stm dead January 7, 2012 Khem Birch leaves Pitt basketball program Ray Fittipaldo Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 2011-12-17 2011-12-28 Schedule Pitt's 2011–12 schedule. http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/m-baskbl/sched/pitt-m-baskbl-sched.html Pitt Men's Basketball 2011-2012 Schedule PittsburghPanthers.com 2011-10-22 yes yes yes yes yes |- !colspan=12 style="background:#091C44; color:#CEC499;" | Scrimmage Sat. Oct. 22 5:00 pm yes Blue-Gold Scrimmage Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh, PA Fan Fest/Maggie Dixon Heart Health Fair Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network 6,513 Blue57–49 Gibbs 26 Taylor 14 Wright 5   |- !colspan=12 style="background:#091C44; color:#CEC499;" | Exhibition Sat. Oct. 29 4:00 pm 101–33 Birch 16 Taylor 9 Woodall 7 yes 10 La Roche Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network 6,525 Mon. Nov. 7 7:00 pm 76–67 Patterson 22 Zanna 9 Woodall 11 yes 10 Kentucky Wesleyan Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network 6,536 |- !colspan=12 style="background:#091C44; color:#CEC499;" | Regular season Fri. Nov. 11 7:00 pm 89–56 Woodall 25 Taylor 8 Woodall 10 yes 10 Albany Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network / SNY / ESPN3 10,125 1–0 Sun. Nov. 13 6:00 pm 86–78 Gibbs 24 Patterson 8 Woodall 10 yes 10 Rider Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Philly Hoop Group Classic ESPN3 8,712 2–0 Wed. Nov. 16 9:00 pm 76–86 Gibbs 20 Zanna 6 Gibbs, Patterson, Woodall 4 yes 9 Long Beach State Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPNU 8,215 2–1 Tue. Nov. 22 7:00 pm 73–69 Robinson 17 Birch, Moore, Robinson, Taylor 6 Woodall 10 yes 17 La Salle Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Philly Hoop Group Classic ESPN3 8,375 3–1 Fri. Nov. 25 7:00 pm 78–58 Gibbs 16 Birch 10 Woodall 7 yes 17 Penn yes The Palestra Philadelphia Philly Hoop Group Classic Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network Philadelphia 6,843 4–1 Sun. Nov. 27 5:00 pm 81–71 Gibbs 21 Zanna 15 Woodall 10 yes 17 Robert Morris Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Philly Hoop Group Classic ESPN3 / Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network / SNY 8,758 5–1 Wed. Nov. 30 7:00 pm 80–69 Gibbs 18 Taylor 11 Woodall 7 yes 17 2011–12 Duquesne Dukes Duquesne CONSOL Energy Center Pittsburgh yes The City Game CBS Sports Network 15,880 6–1 Sat. Dec. 3 5:15 pm 61–56 Gibbs, Robinson 16 Robinson 12 Gibbs 6 yes 17 2011–12 Tennessee Volunteers Tennessee yes Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN SEC–Big East Invitational ESPN 17,249 7–1 Tue. Dec. 6 7:00 pm 97–70 Gibbs 20 Robinson 14 Patterson 6 yes 15 2011–12 VMI Keydets men's basketball VMI Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network 8,923 8–1 Sat. Dec. 10 2:30 pm 74–68 Gibbs 17 Patterson 10 Patterson 7 yes 15 2011–12 Oklahoma State Cowboys Oklahoma State Madison Square Garden New York City yes Carquest Auto Parts Classic ESPN2 17,046 9–1 Sat. Dec. 17 6:00 pm 69–55 Patterson 16 Zanna 14 Gibbs 6 yes 15 2011–12 men South Carolina State University South Carolina State Bulldogs South Carolina State Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Pitt Panthers TV / Comcast Network / SNY 9,521 10–1 Tue. Dec. 20 7:00 pm 71–47 Moore 15 Taylor 8 Patterson 4 yes 15 2011–12 men Saint Francis University Saint Francis Red Flash St. Francis (PA) Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN3 8,325 11–1 Fri. Dec. 23 8:00 pm 54–59 Gibbs 14 Robinson 9 Patterson 4 yes 15 Wagner Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPNU 9,315 11–2 |- !colspan=12 style="background:#091C44; color:#CEC499;" | Big East Regular Season Tue. Dec. 27 7:00 pm 59–72 Zanna 13 Zanna 12 Gibbs 5 22 Notre Dame yes Edmund P. Joyce Center Notre Dame, IN ESPN2 8,231 11–3 0–1 Sun. Jan. 1 7:00 pm 63–66 Robinson 19 Taylor 11 Johnson 5 22 Cincinnati Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN Plus/Root Sports Pittsburgh 12,508 11–4 0–2 Thu. Jan. 5 7:00 pm 81–84 Zanna 16 Patterson 9 Gibbs, Johnson 4 DePaul yes Allstate Arena Rosemont, IL ESPN2 8,110 11–5 0–3 Wed. Jan. 11 7:00 pm 39–62 Moore 10 Robinson 9 Epps 4 2011–12 Rutgers Scarlet Knights Rutgers Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN Plus/Root Sports Pittsburgh 10,812 11–6 0–4 Sat. Jan. 14 2:00 pm 57–62 Gibbs 29 Robinson, Patterson 7 Robinson 3 Marquette 25 yes Bradley Center Milwaukee, WI ESPNU 18,404 11–7 0–5 Mon. Jan. 16 7:30 pm 63–71 Gibbs, Patterson, Wright 10 Taylor 11 Patterson, Robinson, Wright 3 Syracuse 1 yes Carrier Dome Syracuse, New York ESPN Big Monday 24,826 11–8 0–6 Sat. Jan. 21 9:00 pm 62–73 Gibbs, Patterson 14 Robinson 7 Patterson 7 Louisville 23 Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN College GameDay 12,508 11–9 0–7 Wed. Jan. 25 7:00 pm 86–74 Gibbs 22 Patterson 11 Woodall 9 Providence Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN Plus/Root Sports Pittsburgh 10,049 12–9 1–7 Sat. Jan. 28 4:00 pm 72–60 Robinson 23 Zanna 10 Woodall 10 Georgetown 10 Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN 12,508 13–9 2–7 Mon. Jan. 30 7:00 pm 72–66 Woodall 24 Taylor 7 Patterson 4 West Virginia yes WVU Coliseum Morgantown, WV Backyard Brawl ESPN Big Monday 13,032 14–9 3–7 Sun. Feb. 5 2:00 pm 79–70 Woodall 29 Zanna 8 Woodall 5 Villanova Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN 12,508 15–9 4–7 Wed. Feb. 8 7:00 pm 51–63 Woodall 11 Robinson, Woodall, Zanna 5 Robinson, Woodall 2 South Florida yes Tampa Bay Times Forum Tampa, FL ESPN Plus/Root Sports Pittsburgh 4,507 15–10 4–8 Sun. Feb. 12 12:00 pm 66–73 Gibbs 26 Robinson 9 Woodall 6 Seton Hall yes Prudential Center Newark, NJ ESPN Plus/WTAE-TV, "Big East Game of the Week" NA 15–11 4–9 Thu. Feb. 16 9:00 pm 48–66 Woodall 12 Patterson, Robinson 5 Woodall 8 West Virginia Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Backyard Brawl ESPN 12,508 15–12 4–10 Sun. Feb. 19 7:00 pm 47–56 Moore 21 Robinson 11 Robinson, Woodall 3 South Florida Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPN2 9,849 15–13 4–11 Sun. Feb. 26 2:00 pm 54–57 Moore 16 Robinson 11 Woodall, Robinson, Wright 2 Louisville 17 yes KFC Yum! Center Louisville, KY CBS 22,746 15–14 4–12 Wed. Feb. 29 7:00 pm 89–69 Gibbs 19 Taylor 8 Patterson 7 St. John's Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh ESPNU 9,449 16–14 5–12 Sat. Mar. 3 12:00 pm 65–74 Wright, Patterson 12 Moore 6 Woodall 5 Connecticut yes Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Storrs, CT ESPN 10,167 16–15 5–13 |- !colspan=12 style="background:#091C44; color:#CEC499;" | 2012 Big East tournament Tue. Mar. 6 2:00 pm 73–59 Gibbs 20 Robinson 8 Woodall 6 (13) St. John's (12) yes Madison Square Garden New York First Round ESPN2 20,057 17–15 |- Wed. Mar. 7 2:00 pm 52–64 Gibbs 14 Patterson 8 Patterson 6 (13) (5) Georgetown yes Madison Square Garden New York Second Round ESPN 20,057 17–16 |- |- !colspan=12 style="background:#091C44; color:#CEC499;" | 2012 College Basketball Invitational Wed. Mar. 14 7:00 pm 81–63 Moore, Woodall 16 Robinson 11 Woodall 9 yes Wofford Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh First Round 1,449 18–16 |- Mon. Mar. 19 7:00 pm 82–61 Patterson 19 Patterson 10 Woodall 11 yes Princeton Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Quarterfinals 2,001 19–16 |- Wed. Mar. 21 7:00 pm 68–62 Zanna 15 Patterson 10 Patterson 7 yes yes Butler Hinkle Fieldhouse Indianapolis Semifinals HDNet 3,754 OT 20–16 Mon. Mar. 26 10:00 pm 66–67 Moore, Woodall 16 Patterson, Taylor 5 Woodall 7 yes yes Washington State Beasley Coliseum Pullman, Washington Finals–Game 1 HDNet 4,226 20–17 Wed. Mar. 28 7:00 pm 57–53 Zanna 14 Zanna 8 Patterson, Woodall 5 yes Washington State Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Finals–Game 2 HDNet 3,349 21–17 |- Fri. Mar. 30 7:00 pm 71–65 Woodall 17 Patterson 7 Woodall 7 yes Washington State Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh Finals–Game 3 HDNet 3,849 22–17 |- Eastern Standard Time Division I AP Poll unless otherwise noted Rankings 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings + Ranking movementLegend: ██ Improvement in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. ██ Not ranked the previous week. rv=Others receiving votes. Poll Pre Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 Wk 17 Wk 18 Final AP 10 9 17 17 15 15 15 22 rv -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- n/a Coaches 11 9 16 17 14 14 13 22 rv -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- rv Season notes and accomplishments Pitt won the 2011 Philly Hoops Group Classic title with a perfect 4–0 record. Pitt lost to 2 unranked non-conference teams (Long Beach State and Wagner) at home, for the 1st time in one season. They only had one previous home non-conference loss at the Peterson Events Center. Freshman Khem Birch, at the time Pitt's starting center, left the team on December 16. Starting point guard Tray Woodall suffered a groin/abdominal injury during the Duquesne game on November 30 and did not return until the Notre Dame game on Tuesday, December 27. During the Notre Dame game he reaggravated his injury and did not reappear until the Louisville game on January 21. For the first time under head coach Jamie Dixon, the Pitt basketball team lost over three games in a row,http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12006/1201689-175.stm https://web.archive.org/web/20120109013907/http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12006/1201689-175.stm dead January 9, 2012 Panthers blow big lead against DePaul, lose 4th in row Ray Fittipaldo Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 2012-01-06 2012-01-07 eventually losing a total of eight straight games, its longest losing streak in 18 years.http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_778450.html John Grupp Pitt pummels Big East foe Providence, ends eight-game skid at Pete Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 2012-01-26 2012-01-26 https://archive.today/20120906054018/http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_778450.html 2012-09-06 dead Also, for first time ever, Pitt opened its Big East Conference season with seven straight loses.http://post-gazette.com/pg/12017/1204029-175.stm Syracuse 71, Pitt 63: Panthers' losing streak hits 7 Ray Fittipaldo Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 2012-01-17 2012-01-17 2012-01-20 https://web.archive.org/web/20120120013709/http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12017/1204029-175.stm dead After averaging 26.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in wins over West Virginia and Villanova, point guard Tray Woodall was named the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week on February 7, 2012, by the United States Basketball Writers Association.http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_780541.html Pitt guard Woodall earns national honor Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 2012-02-08 2012-02-08 https://archive.today/20120910204624/http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_780541.html 2012-09-10 dead References 30em Pittsburgh Panthers Category:Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball seasons Pittsburgh Panthers Category:College Basketball Invitational championship seasons Pittsburgh Pan Pittsburgh Pan Category:2011 in Pittsburgh Category:2012 in Pittsburgh