This fall, for the first time, Pitt’s men’s basketball team will open its season with an ACC conference game.
The Panthers will host Florida State on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2019, as part of a new initiative that will see 14 of the 15 ACC teams open their season in conference play to start the regular season.
The 2019-20 men’s basketball season will start on Tuesday, Nov. 5, when Virginia Tech will visit Clemson, Miami hosts Louisville and Georgia Tech goes to NC State, while Duke plays in the Champions Classic.
In addition to Pitt and Florida State, Notre Dame will visit North Carolina, Wake Forest will go to Boston College and Syracuse will host Virginia on Nov. 6.
Pitt’s game against Florida State will be televised on ESPN2 or ESPNU, but four of the games will be broadcast on the new ACC Network, which is the reason for starting the season with conference games.
Each team will play one more conference game (two in Duke’s case) before the holiday break, as the league has gone from an 18-game schedule to a 20-game schedule for the 2019-20 season.
“Next year begins our move to a 20-game conference schedule, and to be able to open the season with a round of conference games makes it truly unique,” ACC commissioner John Swofford said in press release. “We believe it will be a great way to tipoff another outstanding season of ACC basketball for our coaches, student-athletes and fans. In addition, we’re pleased to have a terrific partner in ESPN to televise these games on the new ACC Network and its other channels.”
Florida State is one of the five ACC teams that Pitt will play twice in 2019-20, joining permanent rivals Louisville and Syracuse, Georgia Tech, Miami and North Carolina. Pitt will also host Boston College, Clemson, Virginia and Wake Forest and visit Duke, NC State, Notre Dame and Virginia Tech.
The times for all of the season-opening games and the rest of the ACC schedule will be released at a later date.
