Pitt ranked No. 5 by NCAA NET, 18th in AP, 19th in coaches' poll

The effects from Zack Austin’s long 3-pointer surfaced Monday when Pitt received significant recognition in two national polls and, especially, in the NCAA NET rankings.

The Panthers improved their record to 7-1 with a dramatic overtime victory at Ohio State on Friday, and voters in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches Top 25 polls noticed. Pitt is 18th in the AP, ahead of No. 20 North Carolina and No. 25 and two-time defending national champion UConn. It’s Pitt’s highest ranking since Week 12 of the 2013-14 season. Pitt also is ranked by the AP for the first time since Week 16 of 2022-23.

Pitt is 19th in the coaches’ poll after sitting at No. 25 last week.

The Panthers are also No. 5 in the first NCAA NET rankings of the season on the strength of a 3-1 record in Quad 1 games, including victories against No. 12 Ohio State, No. 29 West Virginia and No. 50 LSU. Pitt’s only loss came against No. 17 Wisconsin on a neutral floor at the Greenbrier Tipoff.

The difficult stretch of five consecutive games away from home continues Wednesday when Pitt travels to Starkville, Miss., to tangle with Mississippi State, No. 28 in the NET, in the ACC/SEC Challenge. Mississippi State (6-1) fell out of the AP Top 25 after an 87-77 loss to Butler on Friday in the Arizona Tip-Off. Previously, the Bulldogs defeated power conference teams Utah of the Big 12, 78-73, and SMU of the ACC, 84-79.

After leaving Mississippi, the Panthers’ road show will move to Blacksburg, Va., where Pitt will confront Virginia Tech in its ACC opener Saturday.

Pitt, which last played at Petersen Events Center on Nov. 18 against VMI, returns home Dec. 11 to play Eastern Kentucky.