Pitt moving benches to showcase the Oakland Zoo at Petersen

For those people who have been attending Pitt basketball games at the Petersen Events Center since it opened in 2002, athletic director Heather Lyke has news for you.

“When they built the Pete, they built it backwards,” she said.

If you think about it, she's right. TV camera angles point toward the teams' benches with a backdrop of suites.

Across the court, the Oakland Zoo creates the noise and engagement with the game that — in the best of times — embellishes Pitt's homecourt advantage.

But the cameras don't catch that. As a result, the Pete is not projecting to viewers, especially potential recruits watching on TV, the desired basketball experience.

Lyke knew about the situation long before the recent change in leadership in the men's and women's programs. But after Jeff Capel and Lance White were hired, Lyke said both men commented, “Hey, you do realize the court is backwards?”

To solve the problem, Lyke said both benches will be moved across the court, with the Zoo directly behind them, in time for the 2019-20 season. Re-seating some fans will occur, and there also will be a new center-court design, she said.

“When you see our games on national TV, I don't think it showcases our students as well as it could,” she said. “The Oakland Zoo is one our best assets that we have at Pitt. The Oakland Zoo is critical to our success.”

Lyke didn't reveal the cost of flipping the court, but she said additional revenue from the ACC Network, which is set to begin operation in 2019, should help.

“With the ACC Network, we have that particular project covered,” she said. “We are running under budget.

“It's not a massive cost. Some of this is a one-time expense, (such as) changing the camera deck.”

Lyke called the project “updating the building to where it needs to be.”

With students seated so close to the opposing bench, Lyke was asked about the possibility of hecklers, and she admitted, “We'll have to manage that.”

But she said she holds Zoo members in high regard and doesn't anticipate a problem.

“One of the things that is great about the Oakland Zoo is they are very organized,” she said. “They meet regularly. We have staff that meet with them regularly. It's about good sportsmanship.”

On another matter, Lyke said her department also has plans to raise money to construct a Center for Human Performance on the upper campus in a project called “Victory Heights.” It would be used by athletes in the 16 sports other than football and basketball.

“Victory Heights is about rethinking the space where the (Fitzgerald) Field House is, where Trees Hall is.” she said, “and what can you actually put in that space.”

It would include strength and conditioning, sports medicine and research facilities, a 3,000-seat arena for volleyball, wrestling and gymnastics and an indoor track.

She called the plan “bold, necessary and transformative.”

Lyke noted the track that encircled the football field at Pitt Stadium never was replaced.

“When you don't have a facility you're recruiting to, you have limitations. We don't have a great training facility.”

She added that 84 percent of Pitt's student-athletes work out in a strength and conditioning room in the 67-year-old Fitzgerald Field House that is not air-conditioned.

“Probably not the best situation,” she said.

“We won an ACC championship in volleyball. You can't use it as an excuse,” she said. “I just think how much better of a position we can put them in for success if we had some of these facilities.”

Lyke said the center remains in the planning stage and significant fundraising must occur, but it won't necessitate an increase in student fees.

“There's no wrecking ball. There's no specific timeline,” she said. “We have a lot of work to do towards that project.”

She said the plans do not include an on-campus football stadium “at this time.”

When told that answer doesn't rule it out forever, she added, “No, you would never rule it out forever. I wouldn't.”

Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib.