Uh and oh, right? With then-No. 3 Villanova’s 70-65 loss yesterday to then-No. 19/21 Pitt at the Petersen Events Center (aka the Pete), the Wildcats have now lost consecutive games for the first time since February 2008. They’ve also lost three of five overall. And, as Our Real Job story for p-burbs notes, it’s odd to see how quickly things have changed for the ‘Cats. Two weeks ago, they were a Final Four team again. Now, coach Jay Wright is getting hit with question after question about whether he’s concerned or what buttons he must push to get things right again. More after the jump.

Now, obviously, Monday’s loss to Connecticut at the Wacho Center was a slight cause for concern, since it offered a template for the three things teams must do (other than shoot lights-out, as Temple did in December) to beat the ‘Cats, according to this column by our boy Mike Sielski:

1. Hope for the right refereeing crew.

2. Get a great game from a guard.

3. Exploit a size advantage.

What happened yesterday was that Pitt did not panic when ‘Nova pressed — the Panthers ran their stuff, never rushed, and limited the ‘Cats’ possessions by working the shot clock whenever they had the ball. But Pitt also got an amazing 21 offensive rebounds, including eight by big man Gary McGhee, a guy who doesn’t exactly remind many of those in Steelers Country of DeJuan Blair. But ‘Nova also encountered a bit of foul trouble — both Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher had two fouls in the first 11 minutes — and while the game was the sort of Big East boxing match we’ve often come to expect, the Wildcats wound up taking just 16 free throws to Pitt’s 34, though 14 of the Panthers’ attempts came in the final minute when ‘Nova was trying to foul to cut into Pitt’s lead.

It is, however, worth remembering that ‘Nova’s schedule was back-loaded with its toughest games. So that 21-1 start, while awe-inspiring, was a bit deceiving. And Pitt had a lot going for it: The Panthers now have three wins against Top 5 teams this season, including two at the Pete, where they’re 130-11 all-time, including an astounding 7-0 against the Top 5. Having been at yesterday’s game, we can see why the place is such a house of horrors for opponents: It’s big and loud, and it’s one of the few places where the students get to sit along a sideline, a la Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium. Plus, this was an emotional game for Pitt. Senior guard Jermaine Dixon was tagged as something of a goat for a few gaffes he had made in the last few minutes of that epic Elite Eight game last year, so much so that his extremely personal desire to win yesterday’s game was the talk of the town over the weekend.

‘Nova is now 22-4, 11-3 Big East. The ‘Cats have fallen to No. 7 in the Associated Press’ rankings, which ain’t bad. But they’re still in second place in the Big East, just one game behind Syracuse (12-2) and one game in front of Pitt and West Virginia (both 10-4). ‘Nova’s remaining games are South Florida at the Ski Lodge on Wednesday, at Syracuse on Saturday, at Cincinnati on March 2 and West Virginia at the Wacho Center on March 6. There is no reason to panic. What matters, after all, is what happens next month. And no one could see last year’s team getting to the Final Four at this time last year, could they?

Links: Pitt 70, ‘Nova 65 [phillyBurbs.com]
How Temple beat ‘Nova [BIG FIVE POST]
There may be a way to beat Villanova [phillyBurbs.com]
Pitt still not over losing to ‘Nova last March [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

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