Busting Brackets
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ACC Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2023-24 season

By Jerran Anderson

Mar 11, 2023; Greensboro, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils center Kyle Filipowski (30) reacts after scoring in the second half of the Championship game of the ACC Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 11, 2023; Greensboro, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils center Kyle Filipowski (30) reacts after scoring in the second half of the Championship game of the ACC Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports /

8. Pittsburgh Panthers

Last season: 24-12, 14-6 in the ACC

The Panthers finished in a tie for third place with Duke and Clemson this past season as head coach Jeff Capel took home the ACC Coach of the Year award. The Panthers made some noise as an 11-seed in the NCAA Tournament before losing in the second round to Xavier.

Now, Coach Capel will look to show it wasn’t a fluke as Pittsburgh checks in at No. 8 in the early power rankings. The Graham brothers, Federiko Federiko and Blake Hinson will be the lone returners while Zack Austin (High Point) and Ishmael Leggett (Rhode Island) will look to emerge in a new conference as transfer portal additions.

Hinson led the Panthers in scoring (15.3 ppg) and rebounds (6.0 rpg) on 38 percent shooting from deep. He’s a versatile presence at 6-foot-7 who will be a solid lead option to have given what Austin and Leggett can do on the perimeter as well.

Austin has seen quite the development over two seasons at High Point. He put up 14.2 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 2.1 bpg, 1.3 apg and 1.1 spg on 33.3 percent shooting from behind the arc and 43.7 percent from the field. He’s an athletic wing-forward prospect who should turn heads as an NBA Draft prospect in the near future.

Leggett is a 6-foot-2 combo guard who should boost their backcourt efforts with his scoring (16.4 ppg) and rebounding (5.8 rpg) abilities. The Panthers are very thin in the backcourt. In a guard-heavy league like the ACC, the Panthers will really have to lean on Hinson’s efforts to be successful or it could be a long season for them.

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