Pitt Continues Rising Up ACC Standings
CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The Pitt Panthers have earned what is perhaps their most impressive win of the season thus far, snapping No. 21 Virginia's 23-game winning streak at home by a score of 74-63 while improving to 7-6 overall in the ACC.
Pitt has fought back from a 1-5 start in conference play by winning seven of its last eight contests, leading to an above .500 record in the ACC for the first time all season. The Panthers are currently tied for fifth place - up two spots from the tie for seventh they had been in as recently as last week - with NC State, whom they hold a tiebreaker over and will face for a second time on March 9, and Florida State, who will face Pitt for the first and only time this season on March 5.
Pitt finished fifth in the ACC standings a year ago and their win over Georgia Tech in the second round is believed to have clinched their NCAA Tournament berth. If the season ended today, the Panthers would face the winner of Virginia Tech-Georgia Tech at 2:30 p.m. on the second day of the ACC Tournament.
The Panthers will keep their eyes peeled on Wednesday's matchup between Miami and Clemson at the Littlejohn Coliseum (7:00 p.m. EST, ESPN2). Both teams currently hold a tiebreaker over Pitt, but it will have another crack at the Tigers on February 27. A Clemson win would move it into a four-way tie for fifth place alongside Pitt while a Hurricanes win would maneuver them into a tie for eighth place with Syracuse and within a half-game of fifth.
Assuming the Panthers can take care of business against Louisville on Saturday (6:30 EST, ACC Network), they stand to further improve their positioning in the conference. While it controls its own destiny for a two-round bye and top-four seed in the ACC, Pitt would benefit from Virginia taking down Wake Forest at home (Noon EST, ESPN2) as it would move into a tie for fourth place with the Demon Deacons before the two programs play one another next Tuesday in Winston-Salem.
While the Panthers' preferred outcome of NC State's contest on the road against Clemson (7:45 p.m. EST, The CW) is contingent on the Tigers' performance against Miami, a Wolfpack win would boost the quality of Pitt's recent win against them with an eye towards its potential NCAA tournament resume.
The Panthers will also be rooting for Syracuse to lose on the road against Georgia Tech (5:30 p.m. EST, The CW) and for Duke to take care of business against Florida State in Tallahassee (2:00 p.m. EST, ESPN) while a Boston College home win over Miami (4:00 p.m. EST, ACC Network) would put added distance between Pitt and the Hurricanes.
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