The Pitt basketball season has just begun, and this year no one knows what to expect.

Pitt opened up their season at home on Nov. 14 against Niagara where they won handily 78-45, which left fans optimistic about the Panthers’ season.

Two days later they played Samford, and the game went down to the wire.  Pitt only escaped Samford 63-56 in a game they could have lost. Samford is a team they should be able to deal with if they are going to beat some of the top teams in the ACC. Things got worse as they lost to Hawaii, who is another team Pitt should beat with ease.

Then Pitt competed in the Maui Invitational where they played Chaminade in their first game. They looked pretty good against Chaminade beating them 81-68.

They then got their first big test of the year against at the time the 15th ranked team in the country, San Diego State. They played fine, but really didn’t make a game out of it getting beat 74-57. It’s not a bad loss, but it would have been nice to give San Diego State a little bit of a challenge.

They then beat a good Kansas State team convincingly 70-47.

The beginning of the Pitt season has been erratic with big wins and bad losses.

Pitt as well is going to need more scoring.

Their highest scorer is Michael Young who has been impressive so far, averaging 14.7 PPG. Pitt as a team is only averaging 69.8 PPG, which is 155 in the country.

Junior James Robinson has been good at point guard so far, and the Panthers will need him big time early this season while they are without senior Cameron Wright. Wright is the best returning player, who the Panthers need to lead them this year. Wright has a lower body injury that has kept him out for the beginning of the season. He may be out another 2-3 weeks, but the Panthers would like him back as soon as possible.

Sophomore Michael Young has been exceptional so far averaging 14.7 PPG and 8.3 RPG, both team highs. If he keeps up that play, it will go a long way for the Panthers.

Freshmen Ryan Luther and Cameron Johnson have been bright spots for the Panthers so far. Luther scored 13 points in the Panthers’ last game against Kansas State, and Johnson is averaging 41% from three-point range.

Chris Jones, Jamel Artis, Josh Newkirk, Sheldon Jeter, Derrick Randall, and the two freshmen need to excel as role players and show the outstanding depth Pitt has.

With the proper mix of effort and talent, Pitt has the opportunity to have success in the ACC and postseason tournaments.