Kevin Pittsnogle

Kevin Pittsnogle

Personal information
Born	April 14, 1912 Martinsburg, West Virginia
Listed height	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight	589 lb (267 kg)
Career information
High school	Martinsburg High School
College	West Virginia
Playing career	2006–present
Position	power forward/center

Kevin Lee Pittsnogle Jr. (born July 30, 1984 in Martinsburg, West Virginia) is a 6-11 feet (2.11 m) forward/center formerly of the Boston Celtics. Before signing a professional contract with the Celtics, he played college basketball for West Virginia University. He currently plays for the Pittsburgh Xplosion of the Continental Basketball Association.[1]

College career

Pittsnogle saw good action as a freshman, particularly against Rutgers, when he posted a West Virginia eight-best rookie record 26 points. He also added 24 points against Syracuse and a career-high nine rebounds.

Until late in the 2004-05 season, Pittsnogle primarily came off the bench for the Mountaineers. However, on February 3, 2005 (coincidentally, the birthday of former Mountaineers head coach John Beilein), starting center D'or Fischer came down with a cold and was unable to play against Pittsburgh. Beilein replaced Fischer in the starting lineup with Pittsnogle, who proceeded to score 27 points in an upset of the Panthers. He remained in the starting lineup for the rest of the season, and quickly came to the forefront during the 2005 NCAA Tournament, when he scored 22 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in a victory against Texas Tech in the Sweet 16 round, and then scored 25 points (on 9-for-15 shooting) and grabbed 5 rebounds in a 93-85 overtime loss to Louisville.

On May 3, 2005, Pittsnogle declared for the 2005 NBA Draft. He did not hire an agent, which meant that he still had the option to reverse his decision. On June 10, he decided to withdraw from the draft and return to WVU for his senior year.

His collegiate career came to an end following a 74-71 loss to Texas in the Sweet 16 of the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Pittsnogle, having just returned from a bloody nose, tied the game with 5 seconds remaining with a three-pointer, but Texas guard Kenton Paulino hit a three pointer at the buzzer for the win.

Professional career

To the surprise of many West Virginia basketball fans and draft enthusiasts, neither Pittsnogle nor his teammate shooting guard Mike Gansey were chosen by any of the teams in the 2006 NBA Draft. Although Pittsnogle was predicted in most mock drafts as being chosen in the early-to-mid second round, he went undrafted and thus became a free agent.[2] On July 25, 2006, Pittsnogle signed a two-year contract with the Boston Celtics. On October 20, 2006 the Celtics waived Pittsnogle. [3] On November 8, 2006, Pittsnogle signed with the CBA's Pittsburgh Xplosion. [4]

Pittsnogle was recently announced to the CBA All-Star game on February 6th after posting 23.5 points per game. Pittsnogle currently holds the CBA single-game record for points scored with 44, which he accomplished earlier in his rookie season. On March 9, 2007 the Xplosion placed him on the team's Inactive Reserve List due to tendinitis in his non-shooting elbow. [5] Even with the injury, Pittsnogle is considered to be a leading candidate for the CBA's Rookie of the Year (award) as he is currently averaging 19.4 points per game and 6.2 rebounds per game while shooting 86.8% from the free throw line.

Awards and accomplishments

• Big East Academic All-Star
• Finalist for the 2003 USA Basketball Junior World Championship team
• Named to 2007 CBA All-Star Team
• Named to 2007 CBA All Rookie Team

External links

• Shocking Night for WVU at the NBA Draft
• West Virginia Mountaineers athletics profile
• "WVU: The A-10's loss is nation's gain", Pat Forde, ESPN.com, February 8, 2006 (story includes information on Pittsnogle)