2-28-19

The Pitt News

T h e i n d e p e n d e n t s t ude nt ne w spap e r of t he U niversity of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | february 28, 2019 ­| Volume 109 | Issue 115

PITT CONTINUES MARCO FIORANTE | SEE PG. 7 LOSING STREAK IN 62-48 LOSS TO CLEMSON

Alex Lehmbeck Staff Writer

Pitt’s men’s basketball team was met with deja vu in its 62-48 loss to Clemson on Wednesday night at the Petersen Events Center, the team’s 11th-straight loss. A late Pittsburgh (12-16, 2-13 ACC) rally was not enough to bring the game within striking distance, but it did resemble the last meeting between the teams. When the Panthers came into South Carolina in January to face the Tigers, they were met with a 3-point shooting attack in an 82-69 loss.

“We didn’t play well tonight,” Pitt head coach Jeff Capel said. “The bottom line is that we didn’t play well, and we’ll figure it out and try to be better next time we play.”

Similar to the last time the two teams faced off, Clemson came out on fire, jumping to a 10-0 lead. Pitt started to bring the momentum back on its side with 17 minutes and 45 seconds left in the first half. Senior guard Jared Wilson-Frame started the short run. Firstyear guard Xavier Johnson, who led the

Opera singer Marco Fiorante performs at Pitt Italian Club’s annual cheese night event.

Hannah Heisler | staff photographer

STUDENTS, EXPERTS DISCUSS CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM Neena Hagen

in Posvar Wednesday night. Instead, the Global Studies Center invited three criminal justice exFrom the Black Lives Matter movement to perts — Dr. Leah Jacobs from the School of Social Campaign Zero, criminal justice reform has com- Work, Terrell Thomas of the ACLU and Commonly been a hot-button political issue — a cam- mander Jason Lando of the Pittsburgh Bureau paign centerpiece for city council representatives of Police — to inform students about the reasons all the way up to former President Barack Obama. behind inequalities in the criminal justice system But no politicians stood before the podium and discuss potential solutions.

See Basketball on page 10 Students rotated between three discussion Senior Staff Writer

circles, each led by one of the experts. Jacobs, who researches criminal justice in the School of Social Work, opened the conversation by drawing a graph on the whiteboard. She illustrated a severalfold increase in the number of incarcerations between 1970 and the turn of the 20th century.

“To really get to the heart of this issue, you See Criminal Justice on page 4

News

PITT POLICE OFFER RESOURCES AT BIANNUAL SAFETY FAIR

Brian Gentry

Assistant News Editor Though fewer than 15 students showed up to the Safety Fair in the first hour of the event, those who attended learned valuable information about how to stay safe.

Students walked from table to table at this semester’s biannual Safety Fair, which lasted from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday in the William Pitt Union’s Assembly Room. The event was hosted by SGB and gave OCC credit to students who attended.

Some tables offered general safety advice applicable to students. Pitt Information Technology hosted a table and provided tips to avoid phishing scams and other online dangers, and Panther Central distributed information about keeping areas of residence safe, particularly when it comes to cooking.

External organizations gave relevant advice as well. Shannon Hefferan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, tabled at the event to teach students more about emergency preparedness in case of weather events. She said students should know what the daily weather will be before leaving their residences.

“Just be aware of what the weather’s going to do that day,” Hefferan said. “If you’re going to do traveling across the state or to campus or to anywhere, we just want you to be aware of the impacts of that type of weather.”

Chris Casamento, the director of emergency management at Pitt, said students can become aware of the weather through Pitt’s StormReady program, which communicates emergency weather situations to students “We’re constantly monitoring what [the NWS] is pushing out, and then we push it out on our social media channels,

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Mike Matta, a detective at the Pitt Police and a member of the Special Emergency Response Team, sits at a table informing visitors about the SERT team. Knox Coulter | staff photographer we push it out on our emergency manJess Scott, a junior resident assistant agement website,” Casamento said. studying political science and economHefferan said students should also ics, attended the event to learn more be prepared for more extreme weather about resources that could be passed events as the climate changes. In particu- along to first-year students. Scott said the lar, she said, Pittsburgh is prone to more Rave Guardian application, a smartphone extreme flooding, something students app that gives students rapid contact with should anticipate. local police, was innovative.

“Places that haven’t flooded before are “It was something that I wasn’t really starting to flood, so be aware of where familiar with, and I think it’s a really cool your floodplain is, be aware of creeks resource that I’m definitely going to share and streams and areas that are vulnerable with my residents,” Scott said. now,” Hefferan said. “They weren’t in the Heather Camp, an officer with the Pitt past, but now they are.”

Police, organizes the Self-defense AwareBy far the largest presence at the event ness Familiarization Exchange. She said was the Pitt Police, which hosted more the class provides valuable information than five tables to communicate various to students who may know nothing about ways they work to keep students safe. self-defense.

The Pitt Police were there primarily to “We talk a lot about situational awarelet students know about resources avail- ness, and not just specific to the Oakland able to them to stay safer. area, but anywhere that they live, anywhere

February 28, 2019

that they go socialize,” Camp said.

Mike Matta, a detective for the Pitt Police and a member of the Special Emergency Response Team, had police equipment like gas masks, Kevlar vests and ballistic shields on his table. The SERT team is similar to a SWAT team, he said, and hasn’t been deployed since the 2012 shooting at Western Psych, across the street from UPMC Presbyterian.

Matta said he wanted students to be aware that there would be police response to major threats on campus. “[We’re trying to] let everyone know that our team exists,” Matta said.

Other officers noted the ways the Pitt Police is trying to gain students’ trust. Pitt Police Lt. Bradley Kiefer discussed how students are protected under amnesty laws in cases of medical emergency relating to alcohol and emphasized that students should contact police or medical professionals if their friends are too intoxicated.

“I want people to realize that the police, first and foremost, we want to help people,” Kiefer said.

Mario Devine, an officer in the Pitt Police community relations unit, said he and other members of his unit focus specifically on building trust by visiting the Oakland neighborhood frequently. “[We try] to reach out to the community, try to make more of a connection with the community, as opposed to what people see police officers doing their jobs,” Devine said.

He said the community relations unit has hosted “Coffee with a Cop” multiple times, an event where police officers sit in coffee shops and wait for residents to go talk to them. Residents can talk to the police about any topic, even if it’s not relevant to police matters.

“We’re showing that we’re here, and we’re involved,” Devine said.

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Criminal Justice, pg. 1 have to recognize the institutional nature of [this nation’s] policies,” Jacobs said.

She then chronologically marked state and federal policies that she said have led to the increase in incarceration rates, starting with the Civil Rights Act and going all the way to mandatory minimums under the Clinton administration.

“Nixon instituted the war on drugs in the 1970s because he thought the social fabric of the country was crumbling after the civil rights movement and was feeding into racial fears,” Jacobs said.

While Nixon and other tough-on-crime presidents had good intentions, she said, they didn’t realize that mass incarceration only perpetuates a cycle of poverty in crime-ridden neighborhoods and leads to more crime.

“We have to find a way to clamp down on these policies and invest more money into [crime-infested] communities through welfare programs,” Jacobs said.

But Kyle Guinness, a junior marketing major, challenged the assertion that the country needs more welfare programs. He said the federal government has poured money into welfare for decades and crime rates have sky-

Terrell Thomas of the American Civil Liberties Union speaks about the impact finances have on the bail process at Wednesday evening’s “Community Perspectives on Criminal Justice” event. Thomas Yang | assistant visual editor rocketed while poverty rates remain stagnant. of programs they implement.

“Where is the macro[economic] evidence Thomas, a representative from the ACLU, to suggest that welfare actually works to reduce agreed and said the nation needs to invest in rates of crime?” he asked. “I just don’t see it.” rehabilitation programs for inmates to lower According to Pew Research, poverty rates of recidivism, which stand at 46 percent in rates have declined 7.2 percent since 1960, Pennsylvania as of 2016. This means two in five and incarceration rates have increased inmates who are released from prison will be three-fold in the same time frame, accord- incarcerated again within five years. He thinks ing to the Hamilton Project — but Jacobs the capitalistic, private prison system is partially maintained that it’s not about the amount responsible for mass incarceration in the United of money the government spends on “so- States. called welfare programs,” it’s about the kinds “Capitalism isn’t all good or all bad, but …

our prisons certainly shouldn’t be run by a capitalist system,” Thomas said. “It’s creating all sorts of problems.”

Thomas also believes law enforcement has a bias against young black men. He pointed to Guiness, a caucasian man, to highlight his point about sentencing disparities.

“Let’s say you and I both get caught with marijuana when we walk out of this building tonight,” Thomas said. “You’ll probably get a citation, but there’s a much higher chance that I, as a black man, will get thrown in jail.”

According to the ACLU, where Thomas does most of his activism, black people are nearly four times more likely than white people to be arrested for marijuana possession.

Lando said statistics like these are deeply troubling. In the wake of the Ferguson shooting, which sparked a nationwide conversation about police brutality and police bias, and implicit bias training program was implemented — a program Lando helps to run.

“A lot of officers were initially turned off by the idea — as was I,” Lando said. “First of all, officers don’t like being told what to do … and you certainly don’t want to put yourself in the position of telling people they’re biased.”

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Opinions

column

from the editorial board

Don’t ignore Cohen’s testimony A consistent characteristic of Donald Trump’s presidency for the last two years has been its susceptibility to scandal. In fact, it’s become difficult and overwhelming to keep track of each accusation hurled at the president and his administration — and when that happens, people tend to just tune it out.

Unfortunately, this strategy has desensitized many Americans to issues they really should be watching closely, like the investigation into whether or not Trump or his administration broke campaign finance laws, among other crimes. Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen’s congressional testimony yesterday, especially, is something that deserves the nation’s refocused attention.

Cohen pleaded guilty in August to a slew of charges, including breaking campaign finance laws and arranging hush money to cover up a possible sex scandal that could have harmed then-candidate Trump. He was sentenced to three years in prison, and testified before Congress yesterday in the hopes of lessening the sentence.

And what a testimony he gave.

With apparently nothing left to lose — he knew he was going to prison — there was nothing to keep Cohen from attacking the man he once protected. He attacked Trump’s personal character, calling him “a racist,” “a con man” and “a cheat,” and said that he’d made bigoted comments about African-Americans.

But the idea that Trump is racist isn’t new, and Cohen’s testimony on that front probably won’t sway those who don’t want to see the president’s true character. What may prove incredibly important is what Cohen said about covering up Trump’s alleged ties to Russia.

“Mr. Trump knew of and directed the Trump Moscow negotiations throughout

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the campaign and lied about it,” Cohen said regarding 2016 negotiations to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. “He lied about it because he never expected to win. He also lied about it because he stood to make hundreds of millions of dollars on the Moscow real-estate project.”

This is a serious accusation, because although Cohen didn’t present concrete evidence that the president colluded with Russia, he admitted to suspicions about the matter. And if he’s telling the truth — and he has no reason not to at this point — then he’s suggesting Trump lied under oath about not being a part of the Moscow negotiations.

Cohen also suggested that, although Trump denied knowing about a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower — which included his son, son-in-law, campaign chairman and Russian visitors who claimed to have information that would hurt Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign — Trump actually knew about the meeting.

Cohen further said he was present during a conversation between the president and adviser Roger Stone about “a massive dump of emails that would damage Hillary Clinton’s campaign,” which is something Trump has denied knowing about to Robert Mueller, the special counsel in the Russia investigation. Two days later, WikiLeaks released almost 20,000 damaging emails hacked from the Democratic National Committee.

This — and so much more that came out during hours of questioning — may not seem like anything more than almostconfirmations of suspicions many have held for a long time. But Cohen’s testimony is historic in that it raises important questions that Mueller’s investigation needs to answer, and America should pay close attention going forward.

MATCHING PELL GRANTS ISN’T ENOUGH

Emily Pinigis Staff Columnist

Financing your degree is undoubtedly one of the most stressful aspects of being a student — it led 3.9 million students to quit schooling in the 2015 and 2016 fiscal years due to mounting federal debt.

While the federal government does offer options to help students pay for schooling, those options are usually not enough on their own.

In the same year, 85 percent of all students in the United States received some kind of financial aid, whether federal or from other avenues. Despite the help they were receiving, many of the students were still forced to drop out due to debt.

This makes it clear that federal financial aid is never really enough for students to adequately finance their schooling. Pitt launched a new effort last Friday called the Pitt Success Pell Match Program.

To help students fiSarah Cutshall | visual editor nance their schooling, For students who already received a Pitt launched a new effort last Friday Pell Grant, it’s a wonderful effort by Pitt called the Pitt Success Pell Match Proto help alleviate some of their costs and gram. This program offers to match worries. But for the students who don’t the financial aid some students receive qualify, the effort leaves them in the dust. through federal Pell Grants, which can In order for a student to qualify for be more helpful than access to loans because grants don’t need to be repaid.

See Pinigis on page 6

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Pinigis, pg. 5 a Pell Grant, their total family income must be less than $50,000 a year, with priority given to those with less than $20,000 in family yearly income. For those students whose families fall even slightly above the $50,000-a-year mark, there are little to no federal financial aid options available. There is only one other need-based federal grant available called the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, but not every eligible student will receive aid from this program.

Many families in the middle can finance their children’s schooling with loans, but that undoubtedly results in years — and maybe even decades — of debt. The average student loan per borrower in 2018 was $33,310. Despite the loan lenders offering the longest repayment plans at 10 years, the average undergraduate degree-holder takes 21 years to repay their debt.

This is without mentioning that there are virtually no grant options available to these families, forcing them to choose between an education or a debt-free young-adult life. This is a choice that no one should have to face, regardless of income.

Federal grant programs also do not take into account broken families when looking at income to judge financial aid availability. The income numbers seem to be the only thing that matters when determining eligibility for financial aid.

For example, many single parents with divorced spouses and their children don’t associate with the ex-spouse, or rely on their income to support their children. But the government considers both parents’ incomes for federal aid, regardless of which parent has custody and will pay for their child’s education. If the parent who has a lower yearly income will pay for their child’s schooling, they still won’t receive the funds they need.

The severe lack of federal funding for middle-class families means broader financial aid options must be introduced in order to give every student a fair chance at receiving aid. Most schools don’t offer financial aid options for middle-class families. Pitt only offers financial aid in the form of federal or state grants, which all focus on the same range of financial

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need. The financial aid spectrum is so polarized towards lower incomes that it is hardly even a spectrum at all.

There is no denying that eligible students really do need the Pell Grant and all the other financial aid options surrounding it, but more attention must be paid to those who just barely don’t qualify for anything and still leave school with a mountain of debt.

Pitt’s new Success Pell Match Program is a wonderful start to a better financial aid system, but changes must be made throughout the system, not just one aspect of it. More funding options should be made available for everyone, since each and every student should have the right to financial aid for their schooling. The current system of financing a college education in the United States bogs students of both lower- and middle-income families down with debt that takes years to pay off. With greater financial aid, students could become more empowered to graduate without cumbersome debt and not be a financial burden on their parents.

More than half of all Americans are middle class. A household must have an income between $36,902 and $58,347 to qualify for middle class, a range that raises slightly for each additional household member. That means that a large portion of students may need some amount of financial aid that they do not qualify for if their family’s income is slightly above average. Even if these families can theoretically pay for at least a portion of their child’s schooling, these financial aid programs do not take into consideration what that family may actually need to pay for, like a mortgage, car payment or any unexpected but necessary expense that can arise.

Pitt’s new program is a large step in the right direction. It may make schooling more readily available for a number of families in the area that may not have previously had the means to finance what is left uncovered by a Pell Grant.

But available and affordable schooling should be available to each and every student regardless of their family’s financial situation. Hopefully one day Pitt will take another large step and extend grant services to those families within a wider range of incomes that still struggle to afford a college education.

The Pitt News Editor-in-Chief CHRISTIAN SNYDER

Managing Editor JANINE FAUST

editor@pittnews.com

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News Editor JOANNA LI

Opinions Editor MAGGIE DURWALD

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Sports Editor TRENT LEONARD

Culture Editor SARAH CONNOR

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Visual Editor SARAH CUTSHALL

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Andrea Michael | Assistant Copy Chief

Brian Gentry | Assistant News Editor Emily Wolfe | Assistant News Editor Jeremy Wang | Assistant Opinions Editor Tessa Sayers | Assistant Sports Editor Thomas Yang | Assistant Visual Editor Eli Savage | Assistant Layout Editor

Copy Staff

Digital Staff

Alexa Marzina Maggie Koontz Bailey Sasseville Elizabeth Martinson Ben King Lia Herman Sarah Stager Fay Cairns Nicholas Rivera Maggie Young Peri Walker

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Editorial Policies

Single copies of The Pitt News are free and available at newsstands around campus. Additional copies can be purchased with permission of the editor-in-chief for $.50 each.

Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the students, faculty or University administration.

Opinions expressed in columns, cartoons and letters are not necessarily those of The Pitt News. Any letter intended for publication must be addressed to the editor, be no more than 250 words and include the writer’s name, phone number and University affiliation, if any. Letters may be sent via e-mail to editor@pittnews. com. The Pitt News reserves the right to edit any and all letters. In the event of multiple replies to an issue, The Pitt News may print one letter that represents the majority of responses. Unsigned editorials are a majority opinion of the Editorial Board, listed to the left.

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Culture

PITT ITALIAN CLUB GETS CHEESY AT EIGHTH ANNUAL ITALIAN CHEESE NIGHT

Elizabeth Donnelly Staff Writer

Listening to classical opera while eating fresh Italian cheeses is not how many students picture spending a typical weekday night, but for the 139 students who attended the Italian Club’s cheese night, this was an exciting opportunity that only presents itself once per year.

Pitt Italian Club hosted its eighth annual Italian Cheese Night on Wednesday in the O’Hara Student Center Ballroom. This sold-out event featured 15 different Italian cheeses ranging from the traditional Parmigiano-Reggiano to the less commonly known ricotta baked with lemon.

The ballroom was set up with an elegant

spread of mountains of different cheeses, with each table featuring a nice plaid tablecloth, trivia worksheets and a cheese fact sheet. The facts on the little cheat sheet highlighted interesting components of the production of different cheeses, as well as the flavor profiles of some of the cheeses featured at the event.

“They made it look a little like what I would expect an Italian house dinner to be — tablecloths, an Italian flag hanging up in the room, the atmosphere of having music playing the whole time,” Nate Spence, a religious studies major, said.

Guests were able to learn about how Brenta Stagionato, which has a mellow, buttery flavor, is made from semi-hard cow’s milk aged for two months and how ricotta

baked with lemon, a creamy, rich cheese with lemon flavor, is made from the leftover milk of goats, sheep or water buffalo. The fact sheet also gave insight into the different regions the cheeses came from — something that is important in Italian culture.

Many students appreciated the inclusion of such a diverse variety of traditional Italian cheeses at this event.

“Having actual Italian cheeses here is nice because you can’t usually find that type of cheese in Pittsburgh,” Jacob Scott Kennedy, a junior French and Italian major, said.

Mark D’Alesio — a senior Italian and biology double-major and Italian Club president — agreed with Kennedy’s statement and also shared his excitement about the annual event.

“The reason that we’re excited about using cheese is because there’s such a great variety, specifically in Italy, because of Italy’s climate differences and cultural differences along the peninsula,” D’Alesio said. “This kind of theme is very intrinsic to Italian culture, too, because Italy is very diverse in their culture. It’s a small country, but someone from the North is very, very different in their customs than someone from the South. So to kind of have the cheese represent these differences in customs gives an idea of Italy’s past.”

Shortly after the guests began to taste the cheeses, there was a performance by opera singer Marco Fiorante, who was born in the See Cheese on page 8

review

‘HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD’ CAPS THE ‘DRAGONS’ TRILOGY Victoria Pfefferle-Gillot Staff Writer

It feels like a privilege to grow up with a beloved movie series and have a strong bond with the world and characters as a result.

Dreamworks’ “How to Train Your Dragon” series is one of these generational treasures and has spanned nearly a decade — the first “How to Train Your Dragon” premiered on March 26, 2010, and its sequel on June 13, 2014. This third, final film caps off the coming-of-age story that started with a timid, scrawny Viking teen and his dragon.

Released on Friday, “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” — written and directed by Dean DeBlois — has earned widespread critical acclaim and is visually dazzling and mature with its storytelling. Its heart is etched deeply into the fabric of the movie. “The

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Hidden World” doesn’t pull any punches with its production and finishes the three-film tale of Hiccup and Toothless in a satisfying and emotional way.

Taking place one year after the events of the previous film, “The Hidden World” follows Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) — now chief of the Viking island tribe of Berk — as he seeks to create a human-dragon utopia. However, as he rescues more dragons from hunters and brings them back to Berk, he is overcrowding the island and drawing unwanted attention from neighboring warlords, who hire notorious dragon-hunter Grimmel the Grisly (F. Murray Abraham) to capture Toothless for them.

In an effort to protect both his people and the dragons, Hiccup proposes they leave Berk on a quest to find the eponymous “Hidden World” — a legendary safe haven for dragons

that Hiccup’s late father Stoick (Gerard Butler) once told him about.

Both of the “How to Train Your Dragon” movies that came out before had stunning visuals by Dreamworks animation and “The Hidden World” is no different. The animation is absolutely incredible from the minutiae of facial expressions to sweeping, crowded action sequences. The cinematography in tandem with the animation is well-shot, making the audience feel each time Hiccup and the others fly with their dragons that they are actually there experiencing it with the characters.

The life and color in the film is breathtaking. The color can be seen especially in the Hidden World, a neon-lit place of awe that lies in the heart of a waterfall cavern in the middle of the ocean, past twists and turns through a rocky subterrain. The dragons are colored in

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luminescent tones and the dragon eggs glow with the life growing inside.

The dragons of the film of course are a big highlight, with the main recurring set — Toothless, Stormfly, Belch and Barf, Meatlug and Hookfang — showing off idiosyncratic developed connections with each of their riders.

The new Light Fury dragon, who is unnamed, was initially seen in promotional material as a sexist — or at the least, lazily designed — feminine, pretty version of Toothless, a Night Fury dragon whose design resembles a black cat crossed with a newt.

The Light Fury is smaller, white and visibly smooth, with fewer fins and shorter wings while Toothless is larger, black and visibly scaly, with more fins and longer wings.

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Cheese, pg. 7 city of Cellino San Marco in Italy. The Italian Club was able to find and book Fiorante because he is currently married to a former president of the club. Fiorante began to formally study opera at the age of 14, and he graduated from the Conservatorio Tito Schipa in 2012.

He impressed the crowd with his impressive and forceful voice, singing traditional Italian opera songs and some Italian-American opera songs — many of which were well-known by the audience. A crowd-favorite was the popular song “That’s Amore,” which many audience members sang along to. The opera performance was the Italian Club’s way of connecting the culture of food with the culture of art.

“Our main initiative is to expose Italian culture to the Pitt community and to have them engage with it in any way we see possible. We have a very genuine love for everything that is Italian and we just want to share that with everybody else,” D’Alesio said.

After Fiorante’s performance, guests continued to sample the different cheeses and a trivia raffle ensued. The raffle was sponsored by Istituto Mondo Italiano, an

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Pitt Italian Club hosted its eighth annual Italian Cheese Night on Wednesday in the O’Hara Student Center Ballroom.

Hannah Heisler | staff photographer

February 28, 2019

Italian organization that offers language programs, art exhibits, cooking lessons and more.

The trivia worksheets on each table were available for the guests to fill out, and the person with the most correct answers won the raffle. The winner received a handcrafted Italian cheese knife set from Istituto Mondo Italiano.

The club hosted its annual cheese night using funding from the National Italian American Foundation, as well as from the Student Government Board and the OCC mini grant, which allowed the program to be free to Pitt students.

“We don’t want to exclude anyone — that’s not the point of it. The point is that we’re sharing a culture, so to make it cost money would just be counterintuitive,” D’Alesio said.

Senior psychology major Theresa Campisano enjoyed the event as an overall celebration of Italian culture.

“I really enjoyed it. It was nice tasting the different cheeses and it was very interactive with the music and the people,” Campisano said. “I liked all of it — with the food, the trivia, the music. I would most definitely come back to this event.”

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Sports TAKE 5: With March Madness right around the corner and the NBA Draft not far ahead, there has been a lot of talk about which college players have what it takes to get to the next level. Ja Morant isn’t playing in the best conference, but he is still thought to be a top draft pick — what really matters if he has what it takes to make it big. More importantly, there is Zion Williamson. He is the best player in college basketball, but ever since he got injured, no one is sure if he will be back this season. And of course, there is Bryce Harper who is still unemployed and Kyler Murray who says he is playing football, but who may still have some interest in baseball. No one knows for sure what any of these athletes’ futures hold, but people can speculate and guess. Morant will make it, Zion should come back, the Phillies should walk away from Bryce and Murray needs to throw.

Ja-dropping talent Ja Morant, Murray State’s sophomore guard, is scoring 24.4 points per game, dishing out 10.3 assists per game and grabbing 5.3 rebounds per game. These are impressive numbers to put up, and his abilities have been duly noted as he is projected as a top-three selection in this year’s NBA Draft.

There is a reason Morant is so attractive to NBA owners and general managers.

There is a reason he is touted so highly for the numbers he puts up, even though he plays in the Ohio Valley Conference, which some consider a weak conference.

His athleticism and intangible abilities on the court are what really makes Morant stand out to the NBA franchises. The old saying goes, “You can’t teach athleticism.”

This phrase epitomizes Morant’s game and speed. His lateral quickness and vertical jump are what he does best. Morant has al-

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Early look at the NFL Combine pittnews.com

WWZD, WHAT WILL ZION DO The Pitt News Staff

Duke’s Zion Williamson (1) falls to the court under North Carolina’s Luke Maye (32), injuring himself and damaging his shoe during the first half of the game on Feb. 20 at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. robert willett | tns ready thrown down some incredible dunks and that is just scratching the surface with what he will do in the future.

Morant’s other strength is that he is fundamentally sound. He knows how to play the game better and smarter than his opponents. That is likely the reason why the Racers are currently sitting with a 23-4 record for the season. Morant makes players around him better and that is what the NBA is looking for in a player.

-Tyler Moran, Staff Writer Zion’s dilemma Duke first-year Zion Williamson evolved from a high school phenom to the face of college basketball this season. In that time, Williamson has become a human highlight reel of dunks, blocks and pure athleticism. It’s the consensus that he will be the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft.

But against rival UNC on Feb. 20, Williamson planted his right foot so hard he

blew through his shoe 33 seconds into the contest, causing him to leave the game. He was later diagnosed with a grade 1 right knee sprain.

After the injury, analysts and fans started discussing whether Williamson, if he recovers from his injury, should return to playing with Duke or sit out and ensure he doesn’t get injured again.

The answer? He should do whatever he wants.

The majority seems to disagree. A Twitter poll posted by sports business reporter Darren Rovell asked if Williamson should be advised to sit out and focus on preparing for the draft, and 63 percent of more than 27,469 voters answered yes.

Certainly, that would be the financially sound decision to make. And if Williamson has his gaze cast on the future zeros in his bank account, then sitting out is the move. But that should be up to him to decide.

February 28, 2019

No one should advise him to sit out. He knows the monetary potential of his NBA career and doesn’t need to be reminded. If he heals and his heart tells him to return to help his team win a championship, then that’s what he should do. If Williamson is the type of player that plays for the love of the game, then he deserves to cut down nets with his team.

-Nick Carlisano, Staff Writer Waiting on Zion After processing the shock of Duke firstyear phenom Zion Williamson’s injury, many sports pundits speculated as to whether or not it made sense for Williamson to sit out the rest of the year in order to stay healthy for the NBA Draft. Williamson, the overwhelming favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, has but two months left to go in his first and last collegiate basketball season.

Should he decide to sit out the remainder of the season, he will undoubtedly still be selected with the No. 1 pick of the draft and secure himself and his family financial security. However, not playing would deprive him of the enjoyment of playing the sport he loves and building his personal brand by continuing to add to his collection of highlight-reel plays.

Instead of rushing back to compete in the regular season for Duke, Williamson should rest up and sit out until the NCAA Tournament begins. With this compromise, he could minimize his risk of re-injuring himself while still taking part in one of the most iconic events in all of sports. This concession would ensure that Williamson nets a lucrative NBA contract and shoe deal while fans can marvel at watching one of the most dynamic college basketball players of the last decade.

-Peter Bosco, for The Pitt News

Find the full story online at

pittnews.com

9

Basketball, pg. 1 Panthers with 11 points, kept it going with a tough finish at the rim. Pitt went cold for the second time of the night soon after that and Clemson went on an 11-point run.

Clemson, which came in averaging only 6.37 percent of 3-point field goals made per game, hit eight threes in the first half. It would end the game with 10 3-pointers made.

The Pittsburgh offense struggled greatly in the first half, only putting up 16 points. The Panthers shot 23.8 percent from the field in the first period, including 16.7 percent from 3-point land.

Johnson, Pitt’s best offensive player this season, had five turnovers going into the break. The Panthers only had one player in double-digit scoring on the night.

“I think what happened today, and at Clemson, is they hit so many shots early we were dejected,” Capel said. “We’re such an immature team, that we allow that to affect everything. We miss a shot, that affects the defense. We play decent defense and they bank in a three, that affects the offense. At times, it takes us

pittnews.com

First-year guard Trey McGowens (2) dunks the ball during last night’s game against Clemson. The 62-48 loss marked Pitt’s 11th straight loss this season. Knox Coulter | staff photographer

February 28, 2019

a while to get out of that, and that’s one of many areas where we have to grow.”

The Tigers, meanwhile, had no trouble cutting through the Pitt defense, shooting 55.6 from the field and 57.1 percent from three in the first half.

Clemson had four players finish with double-digit points.

Pitt came out in the second half with more energy, but Clemson graduate forward David Skara scored six points in a row to extend the Tigers lead out to 3418 with 17 minutes and 34 seconds left to play in the second half.

Finally, Pitt junior center Kene Chukwuka swished an open three to start a Pitt run. On the ensuing Clemson possession, Trey McGowens, third in the ACC in steals per game, picked Tiger graduate point-guard Marcquise Reed’s pocket and finished at the other end with a dunk.

The Oakland Zoo crowd slowly gained life as the Panthers crawled their way back into the game. Pitt managed to pull together a possession where each Panther touched the ball within a fivesecond span, and sophomore center See Basketball on page 11

10

Basketball, pg. 11

First-year guard Xavier Johnson (1) attempts a dunk.

Knox Coulter | staff photographer Terrell Brown capped it with a dunk to cut Clemson’s lead to 13.

“You know that they are gonna make a run, and you know you’re not gonna shoot it as well as you did in the first half,” Clemson head coach Brad Brownell said. “You just gotta hope that your defense is solid and that you rebound well and don’t turn it over for points, which I don’t think we did much.”

Johnson then followed up with a three a few moments later to get chants of “Let’s go, Pitt!” started throughout the arena.

A dunk from senior forward Elijah Thomas with 7:54 to play ended Clemson’s 8:35 scoring drought and Pitt’s 16-2 run to make the score 50-38.

The Panthers would never find their spark again. Clemson first-year Hunter Tyson — who is averaging 1.4 points per

pittnews.com

game this season — hit two late dagger threes, Clemson’s only long balls of the second half, to put away any hopes of a Panther comeback. Tyson finished with a game-h#igh 15 points that included three 3-pointers in 16 minutes of play.

“Come into halftime, guys are upset, feelings are in the air and then the second half we come out fighting,” Brown said. “We need to do that from the start.”

This loss extended the Panthers’ losing streak to 11 games. Pitt will look to finally end that streak when it plays at second-ranked Virginia on Saturday.

“It’s a lot of stuff that we’re dealing with, but no one is going to feel sorry for us,” Capel said. “No team that we play certainly is going to feel sorry for us. We can’t use that as an excuse. We have to figure out a way to be better in these situations.”

February 28, 2019

11

I N D E X

Rentals & Sublet • NORTH OAKLAND • SOUTH OAKLAND • SHADYSIDE • SQUIRREL HILL • SOUTHSIDE • NORTHSIDE • BLOOMFIELD • ROOMMATES • OTHER

For Rent North Oakland 3 BR Apartment on 732 S. Millvale Ave. Available August 1, 2019. $1320‑$1630 +gas & electric.

412‑441‑1211. info@­ forbesmanagement.­ net. www.forbesman­ agement.net Two ‑ 4BR apart­ments available Au­gust 2019. 4821 Cen­tre Ave. Photos on­line, check out www.­ forbesmanagement.­ net, or call 412‑441‑1211. Apt. #1 ‑ $2690+gas/electric.

Apt. #2 ‑ $2580+gas/­ electric.

South Oakland **August 2019 ‑ Large 2BR/2Bath apartments. Clean, walking distance to campus. Great loca­tion. $1200. All util­ities included.

Wash­er/dryer on site.

Off‑street parking avail­able. No pets/ smok­ing or parties.

Call 412‑882‑7568 or email tsciulli123@ g­mail.com 1,2,3,4,5,6 bedroom houses in South Oak­land. Available Au­gust 1st or May 1st. Newly remodeled.

Bouquet, Meyran, At­wood, Semple St. Call 412‑287‑5712 for

pittnews.com

Employment • CHILDCARE • FOOD SERVICES • UNIVERSITY • INTERNSHIPS • RESEARCH • VOLUNTEERING • OTHER

more information.

2 and 3 bedroom lo­cated on Meyran.

Newly renovated, air‑conditioning, dish­washer, and wash­er/dryer. Avail‑ able Summer 2019.

412‑915‑0856 or email klucca@veri‑ zon.net.

2 Bedroom Apart­ ment. Rent: $1690 + electric. Avail‑ able August 1, 2019 on Louisa St. 412‑441‑1211. info@­ forbesmanagement.­ net. www.forbesman­ agement.net.

2BR houses and apart­ ments available in August. Unfur­nished, no pets. At­wood/S. Bouquet. Call 412‑492‑8173 3408 Parkview Ave. Studios, 1‑2‑3 BRS Available June &Aug. Pet Friendly & Park­ ing. CALL NOW! 412‑455‑5600 3436 Ward. Spacious 2‑Bedroom, 1 bath, equipped kitchen, $1,195 + electric, Heat included.

412‑271‑5550 3444 Ward St. ‑ Stu­ dio and 1bedroom apartments. Free heating, free park­ing.

Available May & August 2019 move‑in.

Call 412‑361‑2695

Classifieds

For sale

• AUTO • BIKES • BOOKS • MERCHANDISE • FURNITURE • REAL ESTATE • PETS

services

• EDUCATIONAL • TRAVEL • HEALTH • PARKING • INSURANCE

available on Dawson Street, At­wood Street, and Mc­kee Place.

Newly re­modeled.

Some have laundry on site. Min­utes from the Univer­sity. For more info please call Mike at 412‑849‑8694 August “Best Value” Few remaining, Fur­ nished 2‑bedroom apartments in South Oakland. Call/ text Tim TMK Properties 412‑491‑1330. Visit our website www.­ tmkrentals.com Before signing a lease, be aware that no more than 3 unre­lated people can share a single unit. Check property’s compliance with codes. Call City’s Per­mits, Licensing & In­spections.

412‑255‑2175.

Brand new remod‑ eled spacious duplex.

5BR, 2BA, second and third floors.

Laundry room in apartment. $3000 +utilities. Call 412‑871‑5657 M.J. Kelly Realty.

Studio, 1, 2, 3 and 4 Bedroom Apart­ments, Duplexes and Houses.

N. & S. Oakland from $750‑$2500. mjkellyrealty@gmail.­ com. 412‑271‑5550. www.mjkellyrealty.­ com

4BR apartment avail­able on Dawson. $2300/mo plus some utilities. Wash­er/dryer in buildings. Call or text 724‑350‑5000.

Newly Updated 4‑bedroom, 2‑bath townhouse. Laun‑ dry & new bath in base­ment. $2000+ Utili­ties. Call 412‑292‑1860

Apartments for rent. 2 and 3 bedroom apart‑ ments available. Some

North/South Oakland Houses and Apart­ ments with Laundry

notices

• ADOPTION • EVENTS • LOST AND FOUND • STUDENT GROUPS • WANTED • OTHER

and Central Air. Call or text 412‑38‑Lease Now Renting Fall 2019! Various Two BR units in South Oakland, Bates, Coltart, Edith, Halket Place, Ward Street; rent starting from $975‑$1410 Contact: John C.R. Kelly 412‑683‑7300 www.jcrkelly.com info@kellyrealtyinc.­ com Now Renting for Fall 2019 One Bedrooms located conveniently throughout South Oakland Rents Starting at: $740‑$825 Contact: John C.R. Kelly Office: 412‑683‑7300 Email: info@kellyre­ altyinc.com Website: www.­ jcrkelly.com Oakland Court‑ 2 bedroom house, 1.5 bathrooms. Air con­ditioning. 1 Good lo­cation, close to Hill­man Library.

Rent $750/month + utili­ties. Available Au­gust, 2019. Call 412‑881‑0550.

R A T E S

Insertions

1-15 Words

16-30 Words

1X

2X

3X

4X

$6.30

$11.90

$17.30

$22.00

$7.50

$14.20

$20.00

$25.00

5X $27.00 $29.10

6X $30.20 $32.30

Add. + $5.00 + $5.40

(Each Additional Word: $0.10)

Deadline:

Two business days prior by 3pm | Email: advertising@pittnews.com | Phone: 412.648.7978

upon move in. Avail‑ able spring, summer and fall. Contact Sue at 412‑720‑4756.

Shadyside: 1 and 2BR, great location, hardwood floors.

Free heat. Immedi‑ ate occupancy. Call 412‑361‑2695

Rental Other 115 Chesterfield Road ‑ 1 nice 3‑bed­ room house. 1.5 bathrooms. Recently remodeled. Good lo­cation, close to Ca‑ thedral of Learn­ing.

Rent $1300/month + utili­ties. Available Au­gust 5th, 2019.

412‑881‑0550.

Available Now! 2‑bedroom fully fur­nished house, Air Conditioned for $1,200 plus utilities on North Avenue, Millvale. Need Secu­ rity Deposit and Credit Check. Please call: 412‑315‑8024.

Fall Rentals ‑ 1 bed­ room apartments very close to campus, well maintained, 24 hour laundry, secured

buildings. Rates start­ ing at $775 with some utilities in­cluded.

Call us today at 412‑682‑7622 Studios, 1, 2, & 3 Bedroom apartments available August 2019 & sooner. Oak­land, Shadyside, Friend‑ ship, Squirrel Hill, Highland Park, Point Breeze. Photos & current availabil‑ ity online, check out www.forbesmanage­ ment.net, or call 412.441.1211

Employment Employment Other Busy executive indi­vidual seeking part‑time personal assis­tant. Must be person­able, friendly and have great communi­cation skills.

Must have a good com­puter skill Hours are 20‑30Hrs Weekly.

Salary is $25.50/hr. applicant apply to

jobinquiries820@ g­mail.com

thane@mozartrents.­ com

Comfort Keepers, a Post‑Gazette Top Workplace, is seek­ing caring individu­als.

Caregivers work alongside seniors to provide companion­ ship, light housekeep­ ing, personal care ser­ vices. Flexible hours available. If inter­ested call 412‑363‑5500

Overnight caregiver for young man with cerebral palsy in Squirrel Hill. 9 PM‑8:­30 AM. Flex‑ ible days available, 1‑2 days a week.

No experience with cerebral palsy needed, just responsi­ble and compassion­ate person to check on him if he gets up during the night. Pay $16 per hour. Please inquire 412‑889‑8934

OFFICE INTERN Shadyside Manage­ ment Company seeks person w/ min 2 yrs. college, for upcom­ing spring semester, to interview & pro­cess rental appli­cants, do internet post‑ ings & help staff our action‑central of­fice. Part time or full time OK starting in January; full time over the summer. $13/hour. Perfect job for sophomores & ju­niors, seniors plan­ning to enter grad school, returning grad students, and first‑year law stu­dents!

Mozart Management 412‑682‑7003

Personal, profes­sional masseuse needed.

Long term position.

2X/week. Washington County location. Call 724‑223‑0939 or 724‑229‑8868 any time.

Services Educational The Phlebotomy Training Center www. justphlebotomy.org 2 evening classes weekly, 5 weeks + excellent Clinicals.

Call 412‑521‑7334.

Shadyside 4909 Centre Ave. Great location for this spacious 1BR apartment located be­ tween Pitt and CMU. On buslines, near restaurants, hospital.

Rent includes heat.

Laundry, storage & parking available.

Up­dated kitchens and hardwood floors. $100 Amazon gift card

February 28, 2019

12