MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — It sounded like a rivalry.
Well before the ball was tipped, Pitt players were loudly advised to dine on fecal matter by the West Virginia student section. On the off chance the Panthers forgot, the chants popped up again every five minutes or so.
“We had seen videos. We had heard about it,” said Panthers freshman guard Trey McGowens. “But you can’t know what you’re walking in to until you get there.”
It had all the chippiness one would expect from something billed as the Backyard Brawl. Two double-technical fouls were called before the game even hit the eight-minute mark.