Pitt Falls Further in Latest Bracketology

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers have struggled as of late and fell in the latest bracketology as a result.

Joe Lunardi of ESPN dropped Pitt down to a No. 9 seed, one spot down from No. 8 back on Jan. 14 and down three spots from the No. 6 seed they occupied in recent weeks. He also dropped them into the last four byes, placing them closer to the bubble.

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— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) January 17, 2025

He placed Pitt in the West Region, going up against No. 8 Missouri, an at-large bid out of the SEC, in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.

The winner of this matchup would face the winner of either No. 1 Iowa State, the automatic qualifier out of the Big 12, or the winner of the First Four Four matchup of No. 16 seeds Long Island, the automatic qualifier of the NEC, vs. Colgate, the automatic qualifier out of Patriot League.

Michael DeCourcy of Fox Sports dropped Pitt two spots from the No. 8 seed to No. 10 in his bracketology. He has them facing No. 7 Georga, an at-large bid out of the SEC in the South Region in the First Round.

The winner of that matchup would face either No. 2 Marquette, the automatic qualifier out of the Big East, vs. No. 15 Cleveland State, the automatic qualifier out of the Horizon League.

The latest updates from @tsnmike in his bracket forecast 🚨

What do you think? pic.twitter.com/2HCTKP7YJJ
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 17, 2025

Pitt has lost their past three games, which includes a blowout 76-47 defeat to then ranked No. 4 Dukeon the road on Jan. 7, a close 82-78 defeat to Louisville at home on Jan. 11, ending a 15-game winning streak at the Petersen Events Center, and a road loss, 82-70 to Florida State on Jan. 15.

They've also dropped 21 spots in the NET Rankings since the start of 2025. falling three spots to No. 13 after their 86-74 win over Cal (No. 142) on New Year's Day and moving down two spots to No. 15 after the 83-68 win over Stanford (No. 85) on Jan. 4, both home Quad 3 victories.

Pitt also dropped five spots from No. 15 to No. 20, following their defeat to the Blue Devils (No. 2), a Quad 1 road loss, seven spots after their loss to the Cardinals (No. 28) to No. 27 and four spots to No. 31 after their loss to the Seminoles (No. 64), a Quad 1 road defeat.

The Panthers are 12-5 overall and 3-3 in the ACC, the third highest ranked team in the NET Rankings in their conference.

They'll look to use their strong non-conference showing and get back to winning ways in the ACC, as they fight for a spot in the NCAA Tournament, after just missing out last season.

Pitt hosts Clemson in their next matchup on Jan. 18, a Quad 2 opportunity for a team that needs to get back to winning ways immediately.

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