Pitt head coach Jeff Capel and North Carolina State head coach Kevin Keatts believe the Panthers are an NCAA Tournament team. And they’re not alone.
Former Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim isn’t exactly well-regarded by Pitt fans, considering all that went down during his decades-long tenure at ‘Cuse, but he doesn’t see how the Panthers can be left out of March Madness this season.
“Pittsburgh finished fourth in our league,” Boeheim said Tuesday on the ACC Network. “They have seven road wins. That’s an NCAA tournament team. Always has been. And should be.”
Pitt did finish fourth in the ACC in the regular season. With an 81-73 win over North Carolina State to conclude the regular reason, the Panthers sit at 21-10 (12-8 ACC). North Carolina, Duke and Virginia are the only schools with more conference wins this season. And with the ACC Tournament approaching, the Panthers have a couple more opportunities to rack up big-time conference wins.
Pitt will certainly need a couple more wins. The Panthers are 44th in the all-important NET ratings as of Tuesday night — with a 2-6 record against Quad 1 teams, a 5-2 record against Quad 2 teams, a 7-2 record against Quad 3 teams and a 7-0 record against Quad 4 teams.
The resume is weighed down, according to analysts, by a weak non-conference schedule. There have been a couple of bad losses, which came last year, and Pitt has definitely not played up to its standard all season. But it’s hard to find a team that has improved more throughout the season than the Panthers.
Bracketologists currently have Pitt on the outside looking in. As it stands, before the ACC Tournament has tipped off, the majority of analysts have Pitt in the Next Four Out category. The Panthers are firmly in the mix, but there are likely five or six teams just ahead of the Panthers.
A couple of wins in the ACC Tournament could fix that, and star — and All-ACC first teamer — Blake Hinson has the Panthers ready for what’s to come on the schedule.
“I ain’t got nothing because they know what to do,” Hinson said Tuesday. “It’s March, and that’s what I’ve been telling them since March started, it’s March. There should be no motivating speeches. There should be no, ‘Oh, I didn’t know,’ or, ‘I forgot the play.’ We’ve been playing all year. It’s March. It’s time for your best to come out.”
Pitt earned a double bye as the four seed in this week’s ACC Tournament. The Panthers return to action Thursday, March 14 (2:30 p.m.) against the winner of Wednesday’s second round game between Wake Forest and either Notre Dame or Georgia Tech.
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