Throughout the ACC, there are several historic stadiums which Pitt travels to and from to compete in during conference play.
However, there are a few that stand out the most to head coach Jeff Capel, and the Dean Smith Center, in his home state of North Carolina, is right up there at the top.
“It’s great,” Capel said about the Dean Dome. “It’s one of the historic places in our sport, one of the historic programs in our sport. I’ve had a great opportunity to play there a lot. High school, for a state championship. College, played against them for four years. When I was at Oklahoma, I had a chance to play North Carolina to go to the Final Four in the regional championship. And then obviously, my years back at Duke.”
This year’s North Carolina squad holds an impressive record of 18-7, as well as a conference mark of 10-4. The Tar Heels, who score almost 80 points per game, are led by bigs Armando Bacot and Brady Manek, as well as guards Caleb Love and RJ Davis.
In Capel’s four-year tenure at Pitt, the Panthers have split their series against UNC, with both programs taking home two wins apiece. In the one road game for Capel and Pitt, back in early 2020, the Panthers came out on top behind 20-point performances from Trey McGowens and Justin Champagnie.
Pitt Tops UNC for First ACC Road Win Under Jeff Capel
“The last time we were there, as a coach, I had success there,” Capel said. “When I was the head coach here, when we went there two years ago. So, again, it’s a great place to play, their fans are great, they love their program, it’s a program that has as much pride in their basketball program as any program in the country. So it is always great to have a chance to go in there and play.”
The Panthers will take on the Tar Heels at 8 p.m. in Chapel Hill on Wednesday, Feb. 16 on ACC Network.
Bring back Barry Rohrssen! Helped Howland and Dixon get those character guys from NYC that led to those great teams that filled up the Oakland Zoo. Tough to watch an empty stadium an intramural squad.