There were a lot of directions that I could take the blog in this week. I could lament the fact that the Penguins have lost two of their three games since the last entry, solidifying their “one step forward, two steps back” personality. I could complain that there is a schism growing within the Steelers’ organization regarding who the starting quarterback should be next season, with some players and coaches lobbying for career backup Mason Rudolph to take the reins from Kenny Pickett. However, seeing as I have the day off of work for President’s Day, I will focus on something a bit more positive: the resiliency and resurgence of Pitt’s men’s basketball team this season.

By all accounts, the season started okay–not great, but okay. The Panthers defeated all non-power 5 conference opponents, along with West Virginia and Oregon State–both of whom turned out to be terrible teams. They also lost a few non-conference games against Florida (who are 6th in the SEC, making them somewhat decent) and Missouri. The latter is the biggest non-conference blemish on the roster, a loss at home against a team that, at the time of writing, has still not won a single SEC conference game.

The beginning of the ACC campaign did not start well, either. A home loss against Clemson and an 8-point loss at Syracuse (a game during which Pitt led by as many as eleven points) mired the team in a 0-2 start. They also lost at home to UNC before notching their first conference win in Louisville against a dreadful Cardinals team. That lone win was followed by two more losses: a home game against Duke that essentially ended before it started, and a home game against Syracuse that finished as a double-digit loss. The Panthers were 1-5 in the conference with several losses that hurt their résumé, namely the two losses against Syracuse and the home loss against Clemson.

Fast forward to January 20th, when Pitt traveled to Durham to take on a Duke team that smashed them by 22 in the first meeting. The Panthers went into one of the most hostile environments in college basketball and silenced the Cameron Crazies, beating the Blue Devils by 4 for only the second road win in Durham in program history. Oftentimes, games like these are anomalous, but for Pitt, this win was a catalyst to get the program firing on all cylinders.

Since that win at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Panthers have won 6 of their last 7–including their most recent 5 contests. These wins include road triumphs in Atlanta, Raleigh, and Charlottesville. That win in Charlottesville against the University of Virginia ended the Cavaliers’ 23-game home win streak, another incredible victory in a hostile environment. After a 1-5 start to the conference schedule, Pitt is tied for 4th in the ACC standings at 8-6 with a 17-8 overall record.

The Panthers’ last six games are as follows:

• At Wake Forest (NET Ranking: 40)
• Home against Virginia Tech (62)
• At Clemson (27)
• At Boston College (87)
• Home against Florida State (96)
• Home against NC State (75)

The NET Rankings–short for NCAA Evaluation Tool–is the primary tool that the NCAA Tournament selection committee uses to decide who books their ticket to March Madness. Pitt’s NET ranking is 47, and Fox College Hoops has the team in their “next four out”. This is a remarkable turn-around from after the second loss to Syracuse, where the team appeared to be all-but-eliminated from tournament contention. Blake Hinson hanging 41 points on Louisville in their most recent outing was the exclamation point on an incredible run, one which has been spear-headed by Blake’s veteran leadership and the amazing development of freshman guards Carlton “Bub” Carrington and Jaland Lowe.

This run is not a case of “too little, too late”, as one may expect. Analyzing Pitt’s remaining schedule, every game is winnable–the toughest test will be a road game at Littlejohn Coliseum against Clemson. If the team can somehow finish 12-8 in the ACC, the likeliest path being that they win all of their remaining home games and handle Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Pitt will probably have at least one bye in the ACC tournament.

This is not to say that Pitt will definitely qualify for the NCAA Tournament in March, as it is more than possible that they lose any of those 6 remaining games. Plus, what Pitt does is not the be-all, end-all–they also have to root for other teams that are on the bubble to flame out. However, they have put themselves in a position where qualification for postseason play is firmly within reach. An incredible amount of credit should be given to Jeff Capel and the rest of the coaching staff for preventing the players from giving up on the season at 1-5, as well as their roles in the development and nurturing of the team’s talent. If the Panthers take care of business in the next month, we could see their name being announced on Selection Sunday.

Happy President’s Day, and have a good week.