Jeff Capel once was an excited student in North Carolina, looking forward to watching the ACC Tournament on TV when his teacher brought a TV into the classroom.
He mentioned, “When the ACC Tournament came around, it was hard to focus on school activities.”
Later, he worked as a ballboy for Wake Forest, where his father was an assistant coach, and got to experience the tournament up close at the Greensboro Coliseum.
He also played as a guard at Duke and fulfilled his dream of participating in the tournament.
“Having the opportunity to play on the same floor where so many legendary players, teams, coaches, and games have left their mark was incredibly special for me,” he said about the Greensboro Coliseum.
Now, as the coach of Pitt basketball, he is aiming for the team's first ACC championship, starting with a game against Wake Forest at 2:30 p.m. Thursday at Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. Capel is not bothered that the tournament is not in North Carolina this year. He has experienced the ACC Tournament in four phases of his life — as an elementary student, a ballboy, a player, and a coach. This adds extra significance to the Pitt’s quarterfinal game against Wake Forest, making it more than just one of 32 games.
BUBBLE WATCH: Wake Forest over Notre Dame.
Thursday's game between the Demon Deacons and Pitt feels like a "Loser Leaves Town" match from Monday Night Raw in the 1990s.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 13, 2024
While Capel has a lot of personal history connected to the ACC Tournament, the focus is on the present. Pitt needs to win to continue the season in the semifinal round on Friday and improve its chances of making it to the NCAA Tournament. Some are calling the game between Pitt and Wake Forest a play-in game.
Perhaps, but it's definitely a situation of win or go home and settle for the NIT.
Here are five things to think about before the game:
1. The deciding factor
Pitt and Wake Forest have faced each other twice this season, with Pitt winning 77-72 on Jan. 31 at Petersen Events Center and Wake Forest responding with a 91-58 win on Feb. 20 in Winston-Salem, N.C. It marked the highest points scored against Pitt this season.
Wake Forest kept its chances alive with a 72-59 win against Notre Dame in the ACC Tournament’s second round on Wednesday. The Demon Deacons’ defense prevented Irish freshmen guards Markus Burton and Braeden Shtrewsberry from making an impact with their 3-point shooting by holding them to 2-for-12 from long range.
This is relevant to the upcoming Pitt game because the Panthers typically rely on Blake Hinson's accurate shooting from beyond the arc. In Wake Forest’s win against Pitt, Hinson only scored 10 points, nearly nine points below his average, and made just 1 of 5 3-pointers. If this happens again, Pitt has little chance of success.
Another important factor will be Pitt’s ability to prevent 7-footer Efton Reid III from dominating in the paint. Reid accumulated 26 points and seven offensive rebounds in the two games against the Panthers.
2. Away from home turf
Pitt has secured eight victories away from its home court, including a neutral site win against Oregon State. The team's seven wins at opposing venues matches those achieved by Houston, Duke, Marquette, Purdue, Arizona, and Kentucky in similar situations.
“When we play away games, it's about us versus them and their fans, and sometimes even the referees,” Ishmael Leggett stated. “We understand that we won't have anyone supporting us except each other.”
Leggett, a native of Prince George’s County, Md., is not a stranger to the game at Capital One Arena. He played there at the age of 12 during halftime of a Washington Wizards game. He stated, “I definitely know how to put the ball on the rim on that court.”
Leggett and Bub Carrington, who is from Baltimore, will be playing in front of many friends and family members.
3. Capel handles 'x- y-z’s'
Leggett won't be announced as a starter in front of the crowd because he has become an important player coming off the bench. He is the second Pitt player in two seasons to win the ACC’s Sixth Man Award, following Nike Sibande from last year.
“It speaks to the culture,” Leggett said. “Capel had a plan and we executed that plan. He has a great basketball mind and we trusted him and he trusted us. The coaches have addressed the necessary things. We just have to go out there and play hard.”
After Leggett missed the first Louisville game on Jan. 6 due to a shoulder injury, Capel realized that having Carrington and Jaland Lowe on the court together provided two skillful ball handlers.
“I just liked what I saw with Jaland and Bub together. It wasn’t a knock against Ish,” Capel said. “It was just something I saw, the way the ball moved. I thought it helped take some pressure off Bub where he didn’t have to be the primary ball handler all the time. That can wear you down.”
When Leggett’s injury healed, he returned as the first player off the bench — without a whisper of a complaint. He didn’t have time for that. “I came here to win,” he said.
In his third game in that role, Leggett scored 11 points in the upset of Duke. In the last 14 games of the regular season, he averaged more than 28 minutes per game, with 12.3 points and 5.2 rebounds.
If he continues as the team’s leading rebounder (5.5), he’ll be the first Pitt guard to do so for an entire season since Jaron Brown in the 2001-2002 season.
“The main thing was him still feeling value and understanding his value to our team,” Capel said.
4. Enjoying his final days at Pitt
At some point soon, Hinson will play his last game as a Pitt basketball player.
So, it was no surprise when he didn’t want the moment to end Saturday night, spending several minutes after the final home ACC game with friends and family on the floor of the Pete.
Why not go straight home and rest after a tough 37 minutes against N.C. State?
That’s just not him.
“Just two years ago when I was dropping off groceries at people’s front door, no one was asking for my autograph,” he said. “I really like to take advantage of that type of stuff because you never know when it might be gone.”
He said his journey through three universities — Ole Miss, Iowa State and Pitt — helped shape his character.
”I love the person I am today because I’m humble,” he said. “I really listen to people and I try to learn. It wouldn’t have happened if I wouldn’t have went through what I went through.”
5. One sport is enough
A final note about Hinson, the football player.
He was a wide receiver at Deltona (Fla.) High School and received scholarship offers from various universities. Despite never getting a star rating from Rivals due to playing basketball at Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas in his final year.
Despite being a 6-foot-8, 230-pound person who would be suitable for a tight end or defensive end, Hinson mentioned that he never got any interest from football coach Pat Narduzzi during his two years at Pitt.
Hinson said, “I don’t think coach Capel was going to allow that to happen. I believe I am one of the better basketball players in the country. Therefore, I wouldn’t spend much time playing football.”
What if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, his favorite team, contacted him? “I would pause to think about it and then decline,” he said.
