Pitt’s surprise first-place ACC run fueled by feeling ‘disrespected’

The anger is still tangible to Greg Elliott and the rest of the Pittsburgh Panthers. Accessible, too.

A couple of swipes on Elliott’s phone takes him back to the preseason poll that picked Pitt to finish 14th in the 15-team Atlantic Coast Conference. Four months, 19 wins and one surprising sprint to the top of the ACC later, it still makes the guard shake his head.

“I think our whole team, put together, felt disrespected,” the Marquette transfer said. “Everyone felt like they had a chip on their shoulder and had something to prove.”

The edge has not dulled even with Pitt (19-7, 12-3 ACC) inching toward its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2016 — maybe because the slights continue to pile up.

Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim claimed earlier this month the Panthers were among the teams that “bought” players to help turn their programs around, a comment the Hall of Famer quickly walked back.

And Pitt is still waiting to return to the AP Top 25 poll, nibbling at the fringe recently but struggling to impress voters despite a resume that includes a sweep of North Carolina and home upsets over Virginia and Miami that restored some of the swagger to the Petersen Events Center.

A venue that was among the rowdiest in the nation more than a decade ago during the program’s Big East power years has had more of a librarylike feel in recent years. But there are signs of life: The “Oakland Zoo” student section that sits — well, OK, stands — courtside during games has been packed almost all season. The paying customers who avoided the program in droves as it plummeted to the bottom of the ACC are returning. The first sellout since 2019 watched the Pan- thers stun the Hurricanes in the final seconds.

Coach Jeff Capel is taking none of it for granted. Neither are his players, some of whom began their careers at high- er-profile destinations before alighting to Pitt in search of opportunity.

Do-everything guard Jamar- ius Burton, who is mounting a serious bid for ACC Player of the Year, bounced from Wichita State to Texas Tech before landing at Pitt in 2021.

Elliott made all of 11 starts in four seasons at Marquette before taking a chance on Pitt. Blake Hinson didn’t play at all during two lost years at Iowa State and now is averaging 15.9 points after being given the green light by Capel to let it fly from wherever he wants, whenever he wants.

Six of Pitt’s top seven scorers have resumes with at least one other stop. The only Panther who signed here out of high school — forward John Hugley — is sitting out the rest of the season to focus on his mental health.

Pieces that look thrown together on paper seem to fit at Pitt, which Elliott ascribes to a “connectivity” difficult to describe but invaluable on the floor and off. Often this season Capel has attributed his team’s success to a lack of ego, a humility from spending years being humbled elsewhere.

It’s not uncommon for the Panthers to gather at someone’s apartment or house to watch an upcoming opponent. It’s not uncommon for Capel to ask players what they think about something, be it in practice or a timeout in midgame, a courtesy he doesn’t recall extending to any of his four previous teams at Pitt.