Pittsburgh Panthers: 15-16, 4-14 in the ACC
Head coach: Kevin Stallings (1st year)
Players to watch: Michael Young (19.9 PPG); Jamal Artis (18.4 PPG)
Season recap: Pittsburgh had a tumultuous offseason that saw head coach Jamie Dixon leave to become the head coach at Texas Christian and former Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings come in to replace him and install an up-tempo offense. The Panther offense has been exceptional at times this season, with Michael Young and Jamel Artis combining to form one of the nation's best scoring tandems.
But Pittsburgh's supporting cast has been extremely inconsistent, and the Panthers are among the conference's worst defensive teams, allowing 75.2 points per contest.
Although Pittsburgh won eight of its first nine games, including a road win against Maryland, a home loss to Duquesne in December foreshadowed what was coming in ACC play. Despite an upset against Virginia early in league play, the Panthers dropped eight straight games—including a 55-point home loss to Louisville. An upset against Florida State was not enough to turn things around for Pittsburgh, as the team lost its last four contests.
How they make a run: Young and Artis put on their superhero capes and put the team on their backs, pouring in points at every level and getting to the free throw line at will. Sharpshooter Cameron Johnson and forward Sheldon Jeter step up to fuel a Cinderella run in New York with a win against Georgia Tech and another upset victory against Virginia.
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