Jeff Capel added a second piece in his quest to rebuild Pitt’s basketball program Monday when 6-foot-7 forward Blake Hinson made a verbal commitment to the Panthers.

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Hinson, who lives in Deltona, Fla., hasn’t played since the 2019-20 season at Ole Miss, but he averaged 8.3 points and 2.9 points as a freshman in 2018-19 and 10.1 points and 4.6 rebounds, with 45 3-point field goals, the following season for the Rebels.

““Blake is a talented forward who plays with a lot of confidence,” coach Jeff Capel said in a statment. “We like his competitiveness, ability to shoot the ball with range and his overall desire help impact winning. His skill set combined with his size and strength enable him to play multiple positions on the floor and present matchups problems on offense.

“We are excited to welcome him to our program and look forward to aiding in his continued development.”

Hinson started 58 games for Ole Miss and once played 49 of 50 minutes and scored 16 points in a double-overtime loss to Auburn in January 2020.

In his final season at Ole Miss, Hinson shot 39.6% from the field (97 of 245) and 31.9% (45 of 141) from beyond the 3-point arc.

After his sophomore season, he transferred to Iowa State but never suited up for the Cyclones. He missed the 2020-21 season with an illness that was not related to covid. He left the Iowa State program and entered the NCAA transfer portal before the start of the 2021-22 season after coach T.J. Otzelberger replaced former coach Steve Prohm.

After seven scholarship players announced plans to transfer after the season, Hinson is Pitt’s second commitment from the NCAA transfer portal, joining former Colgate and Lincoln Park guard Nelly Cummings. Pitt has six available scholarships.

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