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Q: Has the Pitt defense taken a back seat for the offense? The first half of the Oklahoma St. game was a totally different mentality of Pitt basketball.

Chris Pitts, Aliquippa

FITTIPALDO: The defense has not been the usual Pitt defense that we have come to know in the past from Jamie Dixon-coached teams. I think it is a result of a few things. First, it's the evolution of the type of player that Dixon has recruited. When Dixon inherited the job from Ben Howland he had players who were not gifted offensively and in order to win had to play a defensive brand of basketball. But as players such as Sam Young, Levance Fields and DeJuan Blair have come into the program the offense has grown into a very formiddable weapon because the players are gifted. I also think Dixon realized that in order to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament he needed his offense to be more productive. When Pitt lost in previous NCAA tournaments it was because the offense could not come through. If that means sacrificing some defense, so be it. If the Panthers want to reach the Final Four or win the national championship they're going to need a solid combination of offense and defense.