Inside The Panthers

Jerry Palm: Pitt's NCAA Tournament Hopes Still Alive

The Pitt Panthers are holding on to their NCAA Tournament hopes by a thread.

Stephen Thompson

Jerry Palm: Pitt's NCAA Tournament Hopes Still Alive
Jerry Palm: Pitt's NCAA Tournament Hopes Still Alive /
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WASHINGTON, DC -- The Pitt Panthers have been knocked out of the ACC Tournament by virtue of a 72-65 loss to North Carolina in the semifinals, but their NCAA Tournament hopes aren't quite dead yet. 

CBS Sports' Jerry Palm has the Panthers clinging to an at-large bid as the literal last team in his latest projected NCAA Tournament field. They join New Mexico, Colorado and Texas A&M - who all picked up critical wins in their respective conference tournament games - among the Last Four In.

Palm warned during halftime of the Mountain West Tournament semifinal between Colorado State and New Mexico that the Panthers need to root against any potential bid stealers from now until Selection Sunday. NC State, Oregon, UAB, Temple, and any of the four Atlantic 10 teams remaining fall into that category. 

Facing a NCAA Tournament field that has a dwindling number of at-large bids still available and without any more opportunities to improve their own resume, Pitt will need to rely on the kindness of strangers as they seek a second consecutive trip to the Big Dance. 

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Panthers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage, and more!

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Published
Stephen Thompson
STEPHEN THOMPSON

Stephen Thompson graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and political science from Pitt in April 2022 after spending four years as a sports writer and editor at The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh's independent, student-run newspaper.  He primarily worked the Pitt men's basketball beat, and filled in on coverage of football, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, in addition to other sports as needed. His work at The Pitt News has won awards from the Pennsylvania News Media Association and Associated College Press.  During the spring and summer of 2021, Stephen interned for Pittsburgh Sports Now, covering baseball in western Pennsylvania. Hailing from Washington D.C., family ties have cultivated a love of Boston's professional teams and Pitt athletics, and a fascination with sports in general.  You can reach Stephen by email at stephenethompson00@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter. Read his latest work:

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