Little Man, Big Impact

No, this is not my rendition of a show staring "little people." It has everything to do with Levance Fields's successful return on Friday night, and what should be his encore tonight. Miami (Ohio) has dropped by the 'Burgh for a showdown with the Pitt Panthers.

Fields had 15 points and eight assists in Pitt's 86-63, season-opening win against Fairleigh Dickinson on Friday. No one really knew what to expect from Fields, and many didn't think he'd even dress. But he did. And the little fella with the big heart didn't turn the ball over in 25 minutes. That shouldn't surprise anyone. As DeJuan Blair said after Friday's game, it's like Fields has the ball on a string.

He'll have to be just as sturdy tonight when Pitt takes on Miami (Ohio) at the Pete at 7 p.m.

Those of you who know me surely expect me to say, "Don't sleep on Miami." But before you roll your eyes, let me know just hit you with some knowledge: No. 4 UCLA 64, Miami (Ohio) 59. Yeah, that was five days ago. And Miami led UCLA by five points in the second half. In LA.

MAC teams have always had a way of sticking around on the road. Do I think the Redhawks can steal one from Pitt? Probably not. But there's a chance.

And that's why Fields has to deliver a solid follow-up performance. The rest of the cast relies on him.

Elsewhere
--God, I would have rather watched "American Dad" than this game. What an awful, awful game.

--You can only imagine how angry/terrified I was as I suffered through the night-capper.

--Our Name of the Week: Flozell Adams (pronounced FLOW-zell). Not only was he frequently mocked by John Madden and Al Michaels as one of the most penalized linemen in NFL history who "should know better" after 11 years in the NFL, he also has a first name that sounds like asthma medicine.

--Apparently I don't talk enough about Tennessee on here. Yeah, that Tennessee -- 3-7, 1-5 in the SEC and on the brink of being coachless. But hey, at least the hoops team is the best team in the worst power conference in college basketball.

--Pitt-Cincinnati is this weekend. This game will go a long way toward deciding the Big East's BCS bid. In the words of the always-awesome Joe Castiglione, can you believe it?

--Nothing too exciting in Hoops World yesterday, other than Li'l Rhody almost KO'ing Duke at Cameron. Yesterday morning, I was thinking there might be some trouble in Carolina. Own-horn-tooting stops here.

--Yikes. I don't know who's/what's worse: Phil Martelli or his team.

--Kansas awkwardly began its title defense. Count me among those who think the Jayhawks will be tougher than expected this year.

--I know you're all as excited as I am ... new rankings come out today.

--There are games other than Pitt-Miami (Ohio) today: UMass-Memphis is at midnight. Should be a good experience for the Minutemen and a W for the Tigers. Expect a lot of scoring.

--Tournament Watch: The Preseason NIT begins today. Good games: St. John's-Cornell and UAB-Santa Clara. If all the top seeds make it to the semifinals in New York, it'll be Purdue-Boston College and Arizona-Oklahoma. The latter could go a long way toward Oklahoma's Tournament seeding and whether or not Arizona gets in.

--Tournament Watch II: The Puerto Rico Tip-Off and its Web site have the most confusing bracket ever. Took me a minute to figure it out. Anyway, Xavier-Missouri and USC-Seton Hall should be good first-round showdowns. If I'm reading the bracket right -- and there's a chance I might not be -- we could see Virginia Tech-Xavier and USC-Memphis in the semis. Just to be clear: Memphis does not play its first-round game in Puerto Rico until Thursday.

--Somebody's desperate. Just win, baby ... with JaMarcus Russell at quarterback. (Cue uncontrollable laughter.)

--Parting thought: Did anyone else see John Madden sporting "Tony Romo tape" on his pinky to show what Romo's finger looked like during the game? Poor Al Michaels -- trying to call the game while Madden is playing with athletic tape. But hey, even with the tape on his finger, Romo's playin' like a kid out there.