DENVER

Did you hear that sickening thud?

So what if you were 1,400 miles away yesterday? You still had to hear the awful noise that Pitt guard Levance Fields' body made when he went flying through the air and landed on the hard floor of the Pepsi Center early in the second half of the Panthers' NCAA tournament game against Oral Roberts.

It sounded very much like a dream season crashing and burning.

The Pitt bench and the few Pitt fans here screamed for a flagrant foul on Oral Roberts' Robert Jarvis. Then, they looked to see if Fields was moving his arms and legs. As hard as he hit the wood, that was no sure thing.

Make no mistake: As well as Fields played in Pitt's 82-63 win yesterday and as well as he played in New York last week when the Panthers won the Big East tournament, he's the one guy the team can't afford to lose.

"I thought it definitely should have been a flagrant foul," I'm happy to report Fields said afterward. "I hit my [left] elbow pretty hard, but that's about it. I took a couple of breaths and I was OK."

OK?

The man even made the two free throws, which, if you've been watching Pitt recently, you know was truly remarkable.

It all was part of Fields' best performance since his return from a broken foot injury five weeks ago.

"He's feeling it now," teammate Sam Young said. "At practice [Wednesday], he was feeling it. No one could stop him. Today, he did the same thing."

It's true what Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said of Fields, that he "can win games for us without scoring." Fields did it at the Big East tournament despite making just 10 of his 41 shots. He ran the Pitt offense seamlessly with 20 assists and just three turnovers in the four wins.

"He's the definition of a point guard," Pitt swingman Keith Benjamin gushed. "He's the best floor general that this city probably has ever seen. One of the best floor generals in the country."

And if Fields keeps making shots like he did against Oral Roberts? On top of that brilliant floor game?

"I don't think we're going to lose," Young said.

Michigan State might argue that point; it meets Pitt here tomorrow night in a fabulous second-round match-up. But there's no question Pitt looks like an even tougher out than it did before the game yesterday because of Fields' shooting.

Let us count the ways how Fields' 8-of-15 day -- including 4 of 7 3-point shots -- should help the Panthers the rest of the way.

For one thing, Fields is a penetrator who looks for layups or to create open shots for teammates. He had seven assists to go with his 23 points against Oral Roberts, the sweetest coming when he blew by defender Kelvin Sango and dished off to teammate Gilbert Brown for a dunk.

If Fields is making his shots, opponents can't overplay his drives. That should create more lanes for him and better looks for his teammates.

Defenders also can't collapse quite so easily on Pitt bigs DeJuan Blair and Young. Oral Roberts tried to take away Young -- the MVP at the Big East tournament -- with double teams and Fields made it pay a huge price.

Finally, if opponents have to worry about Fields' shooting, they can't pay as much attention to Young and Ronald Ramon on the perimeter. Ramon -- who shot the ball well at the Big East tournament -- made consecutive 3-point shots in the first half as Pitt ran away from Oral Roberts.

That's a lot of bonuses.

It's nice to think Fields would have played this way all season if not for his injury. Dixon called him in after last season and told him to lose weight. He lost 25 pounds during the summer. At some point, he also visited a Pittsburgh tattoo parlor and had DEDICATION put on his left wrist and DETERMINATION on his right " 'cause that's what fuels me. I dedicated myself and I was determined to make this year special."

That's why it didn't seem right when Fields' left foot was broken in a game Dec. 29 at Dayton. He missed almost seven weeks and, though running the team well, struggled with his shot when he got back. He made just 22 of 74 shots and averaged 9.7 points in the final seven regular-season games.

"It takes time," Dixon said.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? That maybe the wait is going to be worth it for Pitt?

"This game is just the start for Levance," Blair said. "He's going to take off from here."

The competition will get much tougher tomorrow. Michigan State took out Temple, 72-61, yesterday by holding the Owls to 37.5 percent shooting and top scorer Dionte Christmas to 1-for-12 shooting. It's fair to think the Spartans' terrific coach, Tom Izzo, will have a solid plan for Fields and the Panthers.

Benjamin promised Fields will show up anyway.

"He's fearless. He doesn't care who we're playing. He's never going to be scared."

Benjamin said one more telling thing about Fields.

"He's the Most Valuable Player on this team."

The man gets my vote.

How about yours?