Ladies and Gentlemen, did you see our new addition to the Pirates?  For awhile he wasn't involved in the rotation, some were wondering, quite loudly, "Where has Stix gone?". 

Well one thing we learned from the Virginia Tech game is that Robert "Stix" Mitchell is indeed here and he can help the Pirates more when he is on the court and less when he is on the bench.  Whether it was lack of focus, being in Bobby's dog house, or something in practice that we can only speculate upon, Stix was riding the pine more than a beaver building a dam.  With his slashing to the basket, clutch three at the end of the game, or his made free throws (wait...made free throws??), Stix brings more to the game than we could imagine.  Pirate fans, picture this unlikely scenario: Stix is forced to play the power forward position against the bigger, taller, stronger front line of the Connecticut Huskies. Let us dream that Stix has a great game and scores 19 points, pulls down nine rebounds, plays all but one minute of the game with no turnovers and shoots 47% from the field. 

It is nice to dream right?

Sometimes dreams come true, because last year, Stix did just that against UCONN and the frontline of Thabeet, Adrien, and Robinson.  If only he were capable of playing like this again!  Well luckily for us, there is no Thabeet, no Adrien, and Stix is primed to play a big role against UCONN tonight.  Think of Stix as The Little Train That Could.  He may not be the biggest or fastest but you know at the end of the day he will pull his load and get his freight to where it needs to be, no matter the conditions that may try and prevent him from doing so.  He is the quintessential player and captain.  While we can no doubt believe that Stix wants more playing time, he is a captain, and the ONLY thing he puts before himself is everything.

• The team
• His teammates
• His coaches
• His School
• The fans ...

Somewhere down the list, maybe on the second or third page, you will find "me".  Like everyone else on the team there is an adjustment period especially with playing time.  With such a deep and talented roster, playing time was going to be rationed and some weren't going to get the same they may have received before.   The Virginia Tech game showed us that Stix still has plenty to offer this team, and his ration should be a little larger. 

Through all this, The Little Engine That Could kept doing the only thing he knew how to do-hope for the best, work hard, give it your all and keep chugging. 

Someone alert UCONN...

The train is comin' thru.