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A quick glance at the Pitt Panthers men’s basketball program reveals a general positive sentiment that hasn’t been seen in quite some time, including the team’s overall record, fan engagement, and near-term prospects. .
Pitt (11-4, 4-0 ACC), who beat No. 25 UNC on Dec. 30 and beat No. 11 Virginia on Tuesday, is on a two-game winning streak against ranked opponents . It was ranked for the first time in nearly seven years when Jamie Dixon was still leading the program.
The key for the Panthers to make that happen is to come out on top in Saturday’s matchup against Clemson (12-3, 4-0 ACC) at the Petersen Event Center.
For fans, Saturday will be an interesting mid-season match between the two ACC’s top teams, a game flash with immediate impact as far as league standings are concerned.
In the world outside of college basketball, there may be games on the calendar, but for the Panthers players themselves, a more businesslike attitude is common, especially when it comes to the team’s past success.
“It’s great to be in this position, and I recognize it,” said junior forward Blake Hinson. “But nothing’s really happening. We won the conference game, but we’re not done with anything, we’re not done with anything. Nothing is really a hype.”
Following Thursday afternoon practice at Pitt, Hinson revealed to participating media members that he would immediately dive into preparatory film studies ahead of the Tigers’ visit.
The Tigers tie for first place in the ACC in field goal percentage (47.3%) and are the clear leaders in the conference in long-range shooting with a 3-point-making percentage of 40.5%.
Domestically, Clemson’s 3-point shooting ranks 15th among all Division I teams.
The Tigers rely heavily on defense in the likes of Blevin Galloway, Alex Hemenway and Chase Hunter, who combined to average 45% of Clemson’s 75.4 points.
Hemenway’s health will be something Jeff Capel and company are keeping an eye on Saturday, with the 6-foot-4 senior showing a deep 50% (54 games) in 12 games played this year. 27 games). The Tigers have been limited to only one of his four ACC games at Clemson so far due to injury, and he has missed three straight games heading into Saturday.
Looking at the frontcourt, Clemson has never been skinny.
The player Hinson is likely to highlight personally is Clemson’s leading scorer and rebounder Hunter Tyson, a 6-8 forward who is averaging 15.5 points and 10.0 rebounds.
Junior center PJ Hall isn’t rebounding as much as he used to (4.4 boards per game), but he’s still scoring 12.6 points per game.
Both the Panthers and Tigers have 10-2 records in their last 12 games.
“We’re in the ACC. The quality of our opponents is high every time, so there’s not much to talk about there,” Hinson said. I have.”
Echoing Hinton’s feelings, new graduate guard Jamalius Burton doesn’t want to get lost in the clouds in his team’s impressive start to the year.
The Panthers’ first line in that regard is Clemson, with the Panthers and Tigers set to tip off at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7.
“We are trying to get better every day,” Burton said. “We have two big wins for him, but we are not complacent knowing we have a big chance to play Clemson this weekend. I’m just there.”
Justin Guerriero is a staff writer for Tribune-Review. To contact Justin, please use email (jguerriero@triblive.com) or Twitter. .
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