FORT MYERS, Fla. -- From 1993-1996, Jeff Capel and Chris Collins were teammates at Duke, serving as the backcourt for the 1994 team that went to the Final Four. They reunited at Duke from 2011-2013, this time as assistant coaches under Mike Krzyzewski.
On Wednesday, they will face each other as head coaches for the first time, as Pitt and Northwestern will play for the Fort Myers Tip-Off tournament championship at 8:30 p.m. at Suncoast Credit Union Arena.
Their relationship is not just one time teammates and co-workers. The two talk to each other almost every day and even stayed in the same hotel during the tournament.
"Jeff is like a brother to me," Collins said in his postgame press conference Monday. "... I really wanted him to win, and I know he wanted me to win, and we'll both compete like crazy, like brothers would, for 40 minutes."
Capel and the Panthers advanced to the championship by beating Kansas State, 63-59, in the first game of the doubleheader Monday. Collins and the Wildcats punched their ticket shortly after, beating Bradley, 78-51.
The matchup will be bittersweet for both. On one hand, Collins said they wanted the opportunity to coach against each other.
"I think we both were hoping [we would play] the championship game and not the third place game," Collins joked.
On the other, Collins said, "you never want to play against people you care about."
"If it has to happen, you want it to be at this stage, a championship game tournament," Collins said. "We'll see what happens. I know my guys are going to be ready to go, and so are his. It should be a fun game."
Some notes to preview this game:
• The Panthers have held their opponents to under 60 points four times this season. Unsurprisingly, they are 4-0 in those games.
"I think our defense has been pretty good all year," Capel said Monday.
But he added they would be even better if they protected the ball better. Pitt has committed at least 15 turnovers three times this season, including a season-high 21 Monday.
Northwestern has not done a great job forcing possession mistakes so far this year, with their opponents turning the ball over 58 times, 24 of them coming from steals.
• This might end up being a low scoring game, as both teams have struggled offensively in the early parts of the season. Pitt is shooting .405 from the field and .248 from three-point range, and Northwestern is shooting .410 and .284 from behind the arc.
• Northwestern guard Pat Spencer is coming off a big game against Bradley, scoring 23 points with eight assists. While his shooting has been inconsistent this season, he has still helped the offense, picking up at least five assists in each of his last four games.
• Trey McGowens and Xavier Johnson both got into foul trouble early in the first half Monday and had to sit out most of the first half. Johnson hit the game-winner, but he also was responsible for eight of the team's 21 turnovers.
• Not a note, but this scene in the locker room following Pitt's win Monday is worth posting here because it is... awesome. They really wanted that win to get to play this game Wednesday.
This program fights. #ZooEra pic.twitter.com/ax6xZRGsa6
— Pitt Basketball (@Pitt_MBB) November 26, 2019
Tip-off is at 8:30 p.m..
