Inside The Panthers

Pitt Gets Advice From NCAA Tournament Expert

Pitt Panthers head coach Jeff Capel got some advice on how to improve his team's resume.

Dominic Campbell

Mar 15, 2024; Washington, D.C., USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Jeff Capel yells from the
Mar 15, 2024; Washington, D.C., USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Jeff Capel yells from the / Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers head coach Jeff Capel, along with the rest of the ACC head coaches, heard from ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi at the ACC Spring meetings this week.

Andrew Carter of The News & Observer said that Lunardi spoke to the ACC coaches at the meetings to give them advice on building better resumes for the NCAA Tournament, after only a disappointing five teams made it in last season.

Lunardi, along with other bracketologists, spoke negatively about Pitt and other teams in the ACC about their weak NET rankings throughout the season.

Pitt, who finished fourth in the ACC regular season standings and made the ACC Tournament Semifinals, with a 24-12 record, missed out on the NCAA Tournament. Syracuse and Wake Forest, who both had positive conference records and 20+ wins, also missed out on the NCAA Tournament too.

The Mountain West, whose teams had better NET rankings than the ACC teams, got in to the NCAA Tournament instead. They had six teams, joining the Big Ten with the third most for a conference at the NCAA Tournament.

The ACC got its revenge and proved its worth in the NCAA Tournament, outside of an embarssing performance from a poor Virginia team in a 67-42 defeat to Colorado State.

The four other teams, which included No. 1 North Carolina, No. 4 Duke, No. 6 Clemson and No. 11 NC State, who made a run to win the ACC Tournament, all made the Sweet 16. The Mountain West had only one team make the Sweet 16, San Diego State, who suffered a humiliating loss in the NCAA Final rematch from 2023 to No. 1 UConn, 82-52.

Duke and Clemson both made the Elite Eight, while NC State made it to the Final Four, their first time since they won the National Championship in 1983.

Between the two conferences, the ACC finished with a 12-5 record, second best, while the Mountain West finished 4-6, the worst of any conference with five or more bids.

Pitt fans, and the rest of the ACC, will remember the snide remarks from Lunardi towards their fanbases and how the conference proved the "experts" wrong in the postseason.

With star players like freshman guard Bub Carrington and forward Blake Hinson leaving for the draft this offseason, Pitt fans will only wonder what the program could have achieved if they made it to the NCAA Tournament.

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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