Men’s Basketball: Panthers excel in classroom, finish in top 10 percent in APR

The Pitt men’s basketball team struggled last season with a 5-13 record in the Big East as the… The Pitt men’s basketball team struggled last season with a 5-13 record in the Big East as the Panthers missed the NCAA tournament for the first time in a decade.

But at least the program can take pride in its work in the classroom.

Last week, the NCAA announced that for the second consecutive year, the Pitt men’s basketball program was ranked in the nation’s top 10 percent in Academic Progress Rate among the 336 Division I men’s basketball teams.

The APR uses statistics such as academic progress and graduation rates to measure the classroom performance of all Division I athletic programs.

“Graduating student-athletes will always be the No. 1 priority for our program,” Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon said.

According to Pitt, more than 80 percent of men’s basketball players have graduated during Dixon’s nine-year tenure as head coach of the Panthers.

Notre Dame was the only other Big East school to match Pitt’s accomplishment in each of the last two years, while Connecticut’s poor APR score means the Huskies will be banned from the 2013 Big East and NCAA tournaments.

“This is a tremendous honor for our University and a great reward for all of the hard work and dedication that our players have put into their studies,” Dixon said.