The Pitt basketball coaching staff is working hard to fill their need for big men on their roster.
Losing Terrell Brown and Karim Coulibaly to transfer, coupled with the uncertain future of four-star freshman John Hugley, the Panthers have plenty of uncertainty at the center position. Despite 2021 five-star center Efton Reid being the top off-season priority, adding someone that can play with him and provide them with big minutes and production is also a big priority. The Panthers have reached out to a player that recently entered the transfer portal and were one of the first schools to do so.
Pittsburgh Sports Now has confirmed that Jeff Capel and Tim O’Toole called former Fordham forward Joel Soriano on Tuesday, after he placed his name in the NCAA Transfer Portal. Soriano is a 6-foot-11, 250-pound sophomore forward from Stepinac Basketball in White Plains, New York, the same high school that O’Toole graduated from.
Last season with Fordham, Soriano averaged 27.1 minutes, 10.4 points, 9.2 rebounds per game and shot 55.8% from the field.
PSN has been told that Capel and O’Toole’s initial message to Soriano was that Pitt was a place that would give him a opportunity to come in right away and play major minutes and have a major role for a ACC program. They also talked with him about the ability to help develop his game to play at the next level.
Soriano is someone that is drawing major interest, as he’s also heard from St. John’s, Oklahoma, Illinois, Oklahoma State, South Carolina, Virginia Tech, VCU, Penn State and Creighton.
