Dec 21, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers guard Jaland Lowe (15) brings the ball up court against the Sam Houston State Bearkats during the first half at the Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Watch: Pitt Prepares for ACC Restart

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Panthers on SI
By Dominic Campbell | Last updated Dec 31, 2024 7:00 AM ET

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers came back from Christmas break and have spent time preparing for the length ACC slate that awaits them the next two-plus months.

Pitt finshed it's non-conference schedule 9-2, with their two losses coming vs. then ranked Wisconsin in the Greenbrier Tip-Off Championship on Nov. 24 and a 90-57 road blowout vs. Mississippi State on Dec. 4 in the ACC/SEC Challenge.

They currently rank 11 in the NET Rankings, with the NET (NCAA Evaluation Tool) using a Team Value Index (TVI), that rewards teams for winning tough matches, especially away from home. It also uses an adjusted net efficiency that values facing tougher opponents, getting wins on the road and defeating lower-ranking opponents by large margins.

Those two losses for Pitt are Quad 1 and they also have their 91-90 overtime road win over Ohio State on Nov. 29 as a Quad 1 victory.

Pitt also has two Quad 2 victories, coming in the 86-62 domination of rival West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl on Nov. 15 and also against LSU in the Greenbrier Tip-Off, 74-63 on Nov. 22. They have two Quad 3 wins as well, vs. Murray State on Nov. 8, 83-68, and on the road vs. Virginia Tech in their ACC opener on Dec. 7, 64-59.

The five other victories they have are against Quad 4 teams. This includes Radford in the season opener on Nov. 4, 96-56, Gardner-Webb on Nov. 11, 83-64, VMI on Nov. 18, 93-48, Eastern Kentucky on Dec. 11, 96-56, and Sam Houston State on Dec. 21, 110-75.

Pitt heads into ACC play with the second highest NET ranking, behind Duke at No. 3.

They will host ACC newcomers Cal and Stanford, with the former on New Year's Day and Stanford on Jan. 4, as they begin the next 19 games of their conference schedule.

Panthers sophomore guard Jaland Lowe and redshirt senior forward Zack Austin both spoke to the media prior to the games. They discussed their Christmas breaks, what they made of their non-confernece play, what they want to improve upon and what they've done well so far.