PITTSBURGH — After Pitt’s loss to West Virginia on Friday night, head coach Jeff Capel updated the status of star big man John Hugley who missed the game due to a knee injury suffered weeks ago in practice.
“Hopefully, he can start doing some contact stuff in practice starting next week,” Capel said. “If he does that, if he’s able to do that, and has a couple of good days, there is a possibility that he can be available for Wednesday.”
Hugley has now missed the Panthers first two games of the season, leaving sophomore big Federiko Federiko with lots of responsibility on the inside. Federiko played more than 32 minutes in the loss to West Virginia, scoring five points and grabbing six rebounds.
“We need John, but this game is not just an example of that,” Capel continued. “John is one of the better players in our league, and so we definitely need him, but again, that had nothing to do with tonight’s outcome.”
Hugley earned All-ACC Honorable Mention honors last season after averaging more than 14 points and seven rebounds per game for the Panthers.
Pitt’s season continues on Wednesday, Nov. 16 against Michigan in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn, NY. That first-round matchup will tip off at 6 p.m. at Barclays Center, with the winner moving on to face the winner of VCU-Arizona State in the Championship round.
