Gov. Shapiro’s NCAA bracket pits Pitt vs. Penn State in Sweet 16
It’s a bold prediction. One only a Pennsylvania governor could dream up. Right there in his Sweet 16 round, Gov. Josh Shapiro has Pitt meeting Penn State in this year’s NCAA Tournament. The governor shared his bracket Wednesday on social media. It's the best three weeks in basketball, Pennsylvania.Take a...
5 things to know about Pitt vs. Iowa State in the NCAA TournamentVideo
We now know that the Pitt Panthers (23-11) are going to be in the field of 64 after their 60-59 First Four victory over Mississippi State on Tuesday night in Dayton. We’ve long known that their potential opponent would be the Iowa State Cyclones (19-13), who finished fifth in a...
Pitt marches to 1st NCAA Tournament win since 2014 in First Four thrillerVideo
DAYTON, Ohio — In the aftermath of Pitt’s rousing 60-59 victory Tuesday night in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament, Jamarius Burton, Blake Hinson and the Diaz Graham twins – Guillermo and Jorge – handled themselves from three totally different corners of the emotional spectrum. Guillermo, who blocked Mississippi...
Pitt’s Federiko Federiko out with knee injury for NCAA Tournament game
DAYTON, Ohio — A difficult job just became moreso Tuesday night when Pitt center Federiko Federiko, who started 27 games this season, was not in the starting lineup for the Panthers’ NCAA Tournament First Four game against Mississippi State. Federiko, a 6-foot-11 sophomore, injured his knee last week in an...
‘Best time of your life’: Pitt football opens spring practice
Among the handful of opening days on the annual calendar for major college football, Tuesday’s is far from the most anticipated. It isn’t as important as the start of preseason camp or, certainly, the first gameday of a season. But this unseasonably cold Tuesday morning at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex’s...
Pitt’s Heather Lyke named finalist for SBJ’s Athletic Director of the Year
DAYTON, Ohio — Pitt’s across-the-board success in athletics has gained Heather Lyke national recognition. Lyke, who has been Pitt’s athletic director since 2017, was named a finalist for the Sports Business Journal Athletic Director of the Year award. Pitt finished the fall portion of the academic year ranked sixth in...
Pitt Take 5: Win or lose, Panthers can celebrate this season, look to the future and the return of Will Jeffress
DAYTON, Ohio — No matter what happens to Pitt on Tuesday night against Mississippi State, the season should not be judged by one 40-minute period of basketball. A loss would be Pitt’s fifth in the final eight games of the season, probably tied to each one of the following reasons:...
Pitt center John Hugley IV to enter transfer portal
On the day of Pitt’s first NCAA Tournament game since 2016, a player once thought to be key in the team’s potential reemergence opted to part ways with the program. Junior center John Hugley IV announced Tuesday morning he is entering the transfer portal. “ … It is with careful...
Jay Wright on Pitt’s turnaround; Penn State’s NCAA tough opener; West Virginia’s showdown with Maryland
This will be the most exciting week of college basketball in Western Pennsylvania in a long time. Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia have all qualified for the NCAA Tournament in the same year for the first time since 2011. The action gets going Tuesday night as Pitt takes on...
Pitt’s big challenge in NCAA First Four: Contain Mississippi State’s 6-11 Tolu Smith
DAYTON, Ohio — The game will hit the TV sets in the Canary Islands at 1 a.m. Wednesday morning, an hour later on the Spanish mainland. “My dad will be watching,” Pitt freshman Jorge Diaz Graham said. “My friends, maybe.” But, Jorge, don’t they have to get up and go...
Tim Benz: If Pitt has ‘joy with a mixture of hunger’ conflict over being seeded in Dayton, there’s a way to reconcile it
The NCAA Tournament bracket was released Sunday with Pitt playing against Mississippi State as a First Four team in Dayton on Tuesday. The winner will play Iowa State on Friday. Many Pitt fans seemed to react with equal amounts of relief and outrage. Relief in the sense that Pitt managed...
Pitt receives 1st NCAA Tournament bid since 2016, will meet Mississippi State in First Four
Jamarius Burton talked about how Pitt’s players are “grateful and blessed” to be a part of the NCAA Tournament. He also noted that his and his teammates’ reaction ranged from “joy to hunger” when they heard the news that Pitt (22-11) will play the SEC’s Mississippi State (21-12) on Tuesday...
Tribune-Review’s NCAA Tournament Bracketology: Pitt among 1st on the dance floor
For the past six seasons, the NCAA Tournament was an event Pitt fans followed because it’s what you do in March. They rooted only for their brackets, hoping to have a reason to brag to their buddies. Now, Pitt fans actually can have a specific rooting interest in the tournament,...
Analysis: On the brink of Selection Sunday, is Pitt starting to wear down?
A fair and accurate appraisal of Pitt’s first 33 games — and where it might land next week when the postseason takes shape — needs to include the team’s roster issues. After losing three scholarship players, did Pitt get worn down? The Panthers were 8-1 from mid-January to mid-February, but...
First Call: Pitt star lands with Steelers in mock draft; ex-Steeler DB still high on Jordan Addison
A former Pittsburgh Steeler is sticking up for a former Pitt Panther after a rough NFL Combine. Another former Panther is slated to the Steelers in CBS’ latest mock draft. Aaron Donald will remain with the Los Angeles Rams. And there was a big time interconference showdown in the NHL...
Duke crushes Pitt in ACC Tournament quarterfinal
Jeff Capel’s hand has been on the heartbeat of his team all season. He knew how his players would react to success and failure, and they seldom disappointed or surprised him. For a two-hour period Thursday in Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum, Pitt was not that team Capel had been guiding and...
Pitt wrestler Nino Bonaccorsi seeded No. 1 at 197 pounds for NCAA Wrestling Championships
Pitt wrestler Nino Bonaccorsi is seeded No. 1 in the NCAA Wrestling Championships’ 197-pound division, leading a team of six Panthers who will compete, starting March 16, in Tulsa, Okla. Bonaccorsi, a Bethel Park graduate who compiled a 16-0 record this season, is Pitt’s first top seed since coach Keith...
U mad, bro?: It’s the ‘March Madness of Mad’ for Steelers, Penguins, Pitt fans
In keeping with the March Madness theme of the week, let me give you my four No. 1 seeds when it comes to agitated Pittsburgh sports fans. •Southside Region: Steelers fans when the team goes 9-8 and fails to win a playoff game •North Hills Region: Penguins fans after the...
Next up for Pitt: No. 21 Duke in ACC Tournament quarterfinal
There may be some factions of the Pitt fan base excited for the Panthers’ next game in the ACC Tournament just because it’s Duke, one of the blue bloods of college basketball. It matters to Pitt forward Blake Hinson, too, but for another, simpler reason: It just happens to be...
Pitt holds off Georgia Tech in ACC Tournament, makes strong case for NCAA bid
For the first time in three seasons, Pitt advanced in the ACC Tournament, adding a 22nd victory to its NCAA Tournament resume and earning a berth in a quarterfinal game Thursday against Duke. The root of Pitt’s 89-81 victory Wednesday against Georgia Tech at Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum was clear: Pitt’s...
Pitt shoots for 3rd win vs. Georgia Tech in 2nd round of ACC tourneyVideo
For much of Tuesday afternoon, Pitt might have been expecting to play Florida State in its first ACC Tournament game. But the situation changed dramatically at the Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum, and Georgia Tech rallied to defeat the Seminoles, 61-60, in the tournament’s first game. After its first-round bye, Pitt will...
Despite strong turnaround seasons, Pitt and Duquesne given little chance to win conference tournaments
Even though Pitt (21-10, 14-6) and Duquesne (20-11, 10-8) have had strong bounce-back seasons, they are both relatively long shots to win their conference tournaments. Kenpom.com, a widely used college basketball analytics website, has published its projections for the upcoming conference tournament week. As the No. 5 seed, Pitt has...
No. 14 Miami carries top seed into wide-open ACC TournamentVideo
Miami coach Jim Larranaga congratulated his 14th-ranked Hurricanes for battling through a “marathon” and claiming a share of the ACC regular-season title. The Hurricanes face a different challenge now as the top seed for this week’s ACC Tournament. “He told us what we have next is just a bunch of...
Jamarius Burton called players-only meeting to prime Pitt players for ACC Tournament
Befitting a team that was one victory from winning a conference championship, Pitt enjoyed the appropriate representation when ACC awards were passed out Monday. • There’s Coach of the Year Jeff Capel, only the third Pitt coach so honored — joining Ben Howland (2002) and Jamie Dixon (2004) — and...
ACC Coach of the Year Jeff Capel, 10-year-old son Elijah kept dad’s secret for an entire day
For nearly 24 hours from Sunday to Monday night, only two people outside the ACC office knew Pitt’s Jeff Capel was voted conference coach of the year. Capel and his 10-year-old son, Elijah, kept the secret all day before the announcement shortly after 5 p.m. on the ACC Network. “I’m...
