It's February and Pitt is not only looking to push for a bid in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016 but improve their seeding as much as possible prior to Selection Sunday. Two weeks ago I thought Pitt's ceiling could be a 6-seed, but it looks like they can go higher. As of Joe Lunardi's Bracketology update on Tuesday morning, this is how the surrounding field checked out:
6-Seeds: Miami (21), Illinois (22), Iowa (23), Providence (24)
7-Seeds: Creighton (25), Maryland (26), Duke (27), San Diego St. (28)
8-Seeds: North Carolina St. (29), Auburn (30), Missouri (31), PITT (32)
As of this morning, Maryland, Duke, NCST, and Auburn have lost since that update and Pitt is now sitting as the 29th overall team, right on the precipice of that 7-line. I actually expect Pitt to be a 7-seed in Lunardi's next update Friday morning at 9 AM. While I also don't think it's inevitable, a Pitt win on Saturday at Florida State could bump them up to the 6-line on Monday morning(!). Talk about some quick movement...
It's exciting to follow in the moment, but realistically these are still only projections if the season ended at a precise moment and Pitt still doesn't quite control their own destiny as it pertains to just seeding. Pitt should be able to afford a regular season loss or two as well (depending on who the loss is to) and still make the tournament. This team has earned some real respect in the eyes of a lot of these experts despite some less-than-ideal computer numbers. My takeaway message is to just enjoy every moment with this team and the details should work themselves out, especially if this team sits atop of the ACC on March 4th.
6-Seeds: Miami (21), Illinois (22), Iowa (23), Providence (24)
7-Seeds: Creighton (25), Maryland (26), Duke (27), San Diego St. (28)
8-Seeds: North Carolina St. (29), Auburn (30), Missouri (31), PITT (32)
As of this morning, Maryland, Duke, NCST, and Auburn have lost since that update and Pitt is now sitting as the 29th overall team, right on the precipice of that 7-line. I actually expect Pitt to be a 7-seed in Lunardi's next update Friday morning at 9 AM. While I also don't think it's inevitable, a Pitt win on Saturday at Florida State could bump them up to the 6-line on Monday morning(!). Talk about some quick movement...
It's exciting to follow in the moment, but realistically these are still only projections if the season ended at a precise moment and Pitt still doesn't quite control their own destiny as it pertains to just seeding. Pitt should be able to afford a regular season loss or two as well (depending on who the loss is to) and still make the tournament. This team has earned some real respect in the eyes of a lot of these experts despite some less-than-ideal computer numbers. My takeaway message is to just enjoy every moment with this team and the details should work themselves out, especially if this team sits atop of the ACC on March 4th.
