Cannon Firing Line
Frustrating - Not Disappointing
By Ellis G. Cannon
PSR Publisher

That's how Pitt fans should summarize the end of the basketball season - not the other way around.

It's become an annual right, that pesky question of how we characterize the end of another season.

I object to "disappointing." If anything, call it "frustrating." That's if the focus is on the NCAA tournament. Frustrating to not build on previous years of success, exposure and opportunity. Frustrating to not reach greater heights.

I can buy that, but not disappointing.

If you're evaluating the entire season, how about "successful?"

This is how it always goes down. Pitt loses in the tournament and out comes Mr. Sad Face. Glee one weekend, despair the next. Euphoria replaced by dejection.

It's understandable how a season-ending loss is met with as much by fans, although we're always struck by constant references of how such losses are "bitter" - as if they all aren't.

It's even more humorous-this may read like parsing words but it's an important distinction-how even media professionals will describe losses in such emotional terms. There is a difference in characterizing a season as "disappointing" or "frustrating" if you are trying to characterize what fans are or should be feeling. It is completely different if the media offers being "disappointed" or "frustrated." That conveys a more personal connection-an emotion-professionals are not supposed to have, but do here at a much higher than acceptable level.

That aside, the Panthers had a good season. They acquitted themselves well in overcoming significant obstacles and won a conference tournament. They generally represented their university well. They were a team to appreciate.

One final, but critical, reason the season can't be considered disappointing? Pitt hasn't won anything yet.

True enough, Pitt won the New York tourney. Not to minimize that achievement, but they're built for that event. It's a legitimate future standard to measure against. Barring unforeseen personnel issues, how they fare against that title is a fair way to gauge an evaluation.

That's not the case at the NCAA level, where Pitt has had limited, and by no means particularly distinctive, runs. They've not won anything there. No Final Fours. To suggest it's disappointing they didn't get through a worthy Michigan State team translates to an emotional evaluation, or one limited to the hype and Kool-Aid of the preceding two weeks. Expand the scale of the analysis, consider context and perspective, and you don't see disappointing.

You see a successful season.

To do otherwise also considers the Panthers as better than their talent suggested, at least objectively. It could be very good - witness Gotham - but it also was vulnerable on perimeter defense, perimeter shooting and rebounding, all of which were on display against State, which had a strong positive rebounding margin all year and showed up in the tournament with a 16 RPI.

Maybe there's another word when you consider Pitt's season: satisfying.

"Ellis Cannon's Sportsline Pittsburgh" airs weeknights from 6-8 p.m. on FM Newstalk 104.7. Ellis is also a regular contributor on "#1 Cochran Sports Showdown" aired Sundays at 11:35 p.m. on KDKA-TV.