Busting Brackets
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ACC Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2020-21 season

By Matthew Travis

GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 12: A general view of center court prior to the quarterfinals round of the 2020 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum on March 12, 2020 in Greensboro, North Carolina. The remainder of the tournament will be played with only essential tournament personnel, limited school administrators and student-athlete guests, broadcast television and credentialed media members in attendance due to concerns over the possible spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 12: A general view of center court prior to the quarterfinals round of the 2020 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum on March 12, 2020 in Greensboro, North Carolina. The remainder of the tournament will be played with only essential tournament personnel, limited school administrators and student-athlete guests, broadcast television and credentialed media members in attendance due to concerns over the possible spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /
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GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA – MARCH 11: Teammates Gerald Drumgoole Jr. #4, Terrell Brown #21, Xavier Johnson #1, and Eric Hamilton #0 of the Pittsburgh Panthers (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA – MARCH 11: Teammates Gerald Drumgoole Jr. #4, Terrell Brown #21, Xavier Johnson #1, and Eric Hamilton #0 of the Pittsburgh Panthers (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

. Panthers . 13. team. 444. .

Like the two teams ranked below them, Pittsburgh is coming off a 2019-20 season which they would like to forget. Finishing with a 6-14 record in the ACC and a 16-17 record overall, the Panthers hope to improve a bit this season.

The good news for the Panthers is that they’ll be getting their leading scorer and rebounder in Justin Champagnie, back for his sophomore season this year, in addition to Xavier Johnson, and Au’diese Toney who were Pitt’s second and fourth best scorers from the 2019-20 season, and Johnson also averaged the most assists per game last season as well.

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This being said, Pitt has a good dynamic of players coming back for the 2020-21 season, which means they might be able to build upon their 16-17 record from last season, and actually improve going into the new season.

Here is what Pitt’s roster will look like for 2020-21:

  • Femi Odukale, Freshman, Guard
  • Noah Collier, Freshman, Guard
  • John Hugley, Freshman, Forward
  • William Jeffress jr., Freshman, Guard/Forward
  • Max Amadasun, Freshman, Center
  • Gerald Drumgoole jr., Sophomore, Guard/Forward
  • Justin Champagnie, Sophomore, Forward
  • Abdoul Karim Coulibaly, Sophomore, Forward
  • Curtis Aiken jr., Redshirt Sophomore, Guard
  • Ithiel Horton, Redshirt Sophomore, Guard
  • Xavier Johnson, Junior, Guard s
  • Au’diese Toney, Junior, Guard/Forward
  • Aidan Fisch, Junior, Forward
  • Onyebuchi Ezeakudo, Junior, Guard
  • Chayce Smith, Junior, Guard
  • Terrell Brown, Senior, Forward/Center
  • Nike Sibande, Senior, Guard

With two four-stars in John Hugley, and William Jeffress, and three three-stars in Femi Odukale, Max Amadasun, and Noah Collier, plus a transfer from Maryland in Nike Sibande (if he wins his appeal for a waiver from the NCAA), the Panthers are a completely new team for the 2020-21 season, but they still have their core group of guys from the 2019-20 season.

While Pitt might still be towards the bottom of the ACC, Jeff Capel and the Panthers are building something in Pittsburgh, and we might see some improvement in the near future.