Pittsburgh News, Ray Mernagh

BELLY OF THE BE-AST: PITT’S MCGHEE HAS STEPPED UP HIS GAME

by RAY MERNAGH

Gary McGhee dunked, was fouled, and the Pittsburgh bench rose up in a unified roar. The play was the knockout in Pitt’s double overtime win against a staggering Duquesne club that had been on the ropes for what seemed like hours. Even amongst the mayhem on the Pitt sideline, assistant coach Tommy Herrion’s reaction stood out.

Herrion, who works with McGhee — and all the other Pitt bigs individually — bounded off the bench like an airbag had gone off underneath his seat. The fiery Irishman took about three steps onto the court while pointing a finger at McGhee, all the while exhorting him in a display that would’ve had linebacker Ray Lewis foaming at the mouth. I’m a pretty subdued guy usually but that play, followed by Herrion’s reaction, gave me chills — something anyone who’s followed this team for the last three years would understand.

Gary McGhee is a presence inside the Pittsburgh Paint…and that is a truly remarkable accomplishment. The previous two seasons McGhee was backing up All-American DeJuan Blair, and while his minutes were limited he rarely made an impression except for the frequency with which he fouled. McGhee’s numbers overall last season in 6.7 minutes a game were 1.2 points per game and 1.5 rebounds. In Big East play his production dropped even more as he saw action in only 15 of the 18 league contests and averaged 0.6 points a game and 0.9 rebounds.

Gary McGhee’s destiny as a Big East player seemed like solely a cosmetic one. He was the player that looked great stepping off the bus or walking through an airport. Many folks — including me — believed that’s all he’d ever be, an airport/bus guy, but Pittsburgh coach Jamie Dixon believed/knew something nobody else did. He routinely talked about McGhee’s future and how he felt the young man from the historical hoops hotbed of Anderson, Indiana would develop given time. Meanwhile all us “experts” were whispering that McGhee would have a hard time playing dead in a cowboy movie.

Even when McGhee started the year off productively people were skeptical.

I started to come around when I saw what he did against the similar size that Wichita State presented and called a scout to talk about it. “Lets see how he handles Dexter Pittman,” the scout told me, “I think he comes back down to earth in this next one.” Pittman is the heralded post player for the Texas Longhorns.

Well, McGhee outplayed Pittman, putting up 11 points and 10 rebounds in 20 minutes. After that showing his playing time has steadily increased, culminating with the 35 minutes of action he saw in the City Game. Duquesne thought this was the year they might have an advantage inside against Pitt, given the departure of Tyrell Biggs, Sam Young and Blair. Gary McGhee changed thier minds very quickly. His efficiency and tenacity on the offensive glass have been a godsend to a Pitt team that, at times, has struggled before finding a way to win games.

More and more it’s apparent that going through McGhee inside might be in the Panthers best interests. I can only imagine how good it feels for McGhee to see his hard work pay off with success. I don’t have to imagine how good it makes Herrion feel, his emotion the other night said it all. The 6-10, 255 pound McGhee still cuts an imposing figure walking through airports and stepping off buses.

But it no longer comes close to the effect he’s having in a far more important place…on the court.

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