Panthers voted No. 6 in ESPN/USA Today

The Pitt men’s basketball team earned a No. 6 preseason ranking in the ESPN/USA Today poll… The Pitt men’s basketball team earned a No. 6 preseason ranking in the ESPN/USA Today poll Thursday morning ‘- the fourth time in as many years that Pitt enters the season in the nation’s top 25. Pitt is one of seven Big East teams ranked in the top 25 ‘- a record for the poll. Previously, no other conference has had more than five teams ranked at once in the preseason poll. North Carolina earns the No. 1 spot, with Big East teams Connecticut and Louisville following. North Carolina, which was also ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll last season, returns star forward Tyler Hansbrough, who opted to return for his senior season instead of entering the NBA. Hansbrough averaged 22.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game a season ago. Only two teams ranked No. 1 in the preseason have won the national title. Connecticut did it in 2003-04, and then Florida did it in 2006-07. Last year’s national champion, Kansas, ranks 23rd in the poll after losing three of last year’s starters to the NBA. Notre Dame is ranked ninth, marking four Big East teams in the top 10 of the country. Marquette is No. 17, followed by Georgetown one spot later, and No. 25 Villanova grabbed the last spot. The preseason Associated Press poll will be released next week.