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The University of Pittsburgh Men's Basketball Team held their media day on Thursday. AP reporter Will Graves did a solid job of recapping interesting quotes from the event including this tidbit from Head Coach Jamie Dixon...
Dixon said he's trying to work on nonconference games w/Georgetown, Villanova in the future.
— Will Graves (@WillGravesAP) October 2, 2014
The Panthers and Wildcats have a solid history that existed prior to the creation of the Big East, but strengthened as that initial version of the Conference grew. In 65 career meetings, Pitt has the 1-game edge winning 33 of the games. That edge has been buoyed by a 6-game winning streak over 'Nova with the last Wildcats victory coming on a certain Boston Garden court.
In their first year in the ACC, Pitt earned a 9-seed in the NCAA Tournament and lost in the round of 32 to the Florida Gators.
During the hot-and-heavy period of conference realignment a few seasons ago, Pitt was reportedly one of the three Big East football schools that blocked Villanova's proposed move to upgrade football and join that league. Months later, they led the mass-exodus of football schools from the conference when they agreed to join the ACC along with Syracuse.
Last season, the Panthers football team was supposed to host Villanova over Labor Day weekend, but cancelled that contest during the summer in favor of a television match-up with eventual National Champions Florida State. The Wildcats may have benefited from that move, however, gaining a chance to revive their dormant football rivalry with Boston College as a consolation.
The 'bad blood' between the schools didn't exist on the hardwood, however. Wright and Dixon were never at odds with each other on a personal level. The basketball games between the two Pennsylvania schools were always spirited and hotly contested during those coaches' tenures.
The Basketball history is there, but would Villanova gain anything from a reunion with the Panthers? There's been feedback on our Facebook page and in our original FanShot.