Pitt's Jeff Capel knows he must confront challenges on, off the court

Like every coach on every level in every sport, Jeff Capel doesn’t know what to expect.

He just knows it won’t be easy navigating through more than 20 basketball games — walking in and out of gyms and on and off airplanes and buses — in the midst of a growing health pandemic.

The first game of the season, which is starting about three weeks later than it did in 2019, is scheduled for Wednesday against St. Francis (Pa.) at Petersen Events Center. Pitt’s ACC season opener is set for Dec. 16 at Miami.

“All of us understand the challenges that we face,” Pitt’s coach said. “It’s unlike anything anyone’s been through. We all have our fingers crossed and are hopeful that we can play as many games as we possibly can.”

Problems are inevitable, he said.

“Any sport that has not been in a bubble has been subjected to disruption,” he said. “I anticipate we all will at some point. We’re hopeful that we won’t, but I anticipate that we will.”

In the midst of so much uncertainty, Capel is rebuilding a team (6-14 in the ACC last season) with at least six first-year players, five of them freshmen.

Pitt is awaiting word on a seventh, Miami (Ohio) transfer Nike Sibande, a 6-foot-4 guard, whose waiver for immediate eligibility was initially denied by the NCAA. Pitt is appealing.

One bit of good news involves freshman guard Femi Odukale, who broke his arm over the summer in a scooter accident.

“He’s been able to participate, full-go, for about a month,” Capel said of the 6-5 native of Brooklyn, N.Y. “He’s gotten better. Obviously, he was behind because he had an injury that sidelined him for a good portion once we started the fall semester.

“He’s a guy who can play multiple positions on the perimeter, can defend multiple positions. For a freshman, it’s a challenge — the speed of the game, the intensity, the concentration level, the discipline. And when you get behind, it can be a little bit more of a challenge.

“But he showed some signs of the player we know he can be.”

Capel is eager to see another transfer, 6-3 guard Ithiel Horton, who sat out last season after leaving Delaware, where he averaged 13.2 points and shot 40.9% from beyond the 3-point arc two seasons ago.

“I think he definitely, fully, belongs at this (ACC) level,” Capel said.

Horton practiced with the team last season, and Capel said competing against Pitt veterans Xavier Johnson, Au’Diese Toney and Trey McGowens (who later transferred to Nebraska) helped his development.

“He brings energy. That’s the very first thing,” Capel said of Horton. “He wants to be good. He’s shown he can shoot the basketball, and that’s something that our team desperately needs.”

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