# 2021–22 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team represented the University of Pittsburgh during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Panthers were led by fourth-year head coach Jeff Capel and played their home games at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Panthers finished the season 11–21 overall and 6–14 in ACC play to finish in a three way tie for eleventh place. As the twelfth seed in the ACC tournament, they lost to thirteenth seed Boston College in the First Round. They were not invited to the NCAA tournament or the NIT.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Panthers finished the 2020–21 season 10–12, 6–10 in ACC play to finish in 12th place. They lost to Miami in the first round of the ACC tournament.

## Offseason
### Departures

Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for Departure |
| Xavier Johnson | 1 | G | 6'3" | 200 | Junior | Woodbridge, VA | Transferred to Indiana |
| Gerald Drumgoole | 4 | G/F | 6'5" | 200 | Sophomore | Rochester, NY | Transferred to Albany |
| Au'Diese Toney | 5 | G | 6'6" | 210 | Junior | Huntsville, AL | Transferred to Arkansas |
| Justin Champagnie | 11 | F | 6'6" | 200 | Sophomore | Brooklyn, NY | Declare for 2021 NBA draft |
| Abdoul Karim Coulibaly | 12 | F | 6'8" | 215 | Sophomore | Bamako, Mali | Transferred to St. Bonaventure |
| Terrell Brown | 21 | F/C | 6'10" | 235 | Senior | Providence, RI | Graduate transferred to San Diego |

### Incoming transfers

Incoming Transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Chris Payton | 1 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Junior | Bloomington, IL | Indian Hills CC |
| Daniel Oladapo | 4 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Senior | Bladensburg, MD | Oakland |
| Jamarius Burton | 11 | G | 6'4" | 200 | Senior | Charlotte, NC | Texas Tech |
| Mouhamadou Gueye | 21 | F | 6'10" | 200 | Graduate Student | Staten Island, NY | Stony Brook |

### Recruiting classes
#### 2021 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Nate Santos SF | Windsor, CT | The Loomis Chaffee School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Apr 6, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 27 Rivals: 22 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Pittsburgh Panthers". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 24, 2021. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 24, 2021. ||||||

#### 2022 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2022 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Dior Johnson #6 PG | Lakewood, CA | Southern California Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Jun 13, 2022 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 88 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 27 Rivals: 22 |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Pittsburgh Panthers". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 24, 2021. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 24, 2021. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| November 1, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | | Gannon | W 89–64 | – | 20 – Odukale | 10 – Gueye | 3 – Tied | Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh, PA |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 9, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | | The Citadel | L 63–78 | 0–1 | 27 – Hugley | 10 – Hugley | 4 – Odukale | Petersen Events Center (7,585) Pittsburgh, PA |
| November 12, 2021* 8:30 p.m., ESPNU | | at West Virginia Backyard Brawl | L 59–74 | 0–2 | 17 – Hugley | 7 – Jeffress | 4 – Odukale | WVU Coliseum (14,100) Morgantown, WV |
| November 16, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | | UNC Wilmington | W 59–51 | 1–2 | 15 – Odukale | 11 – Hugley | 3 – Tied | Petersen Events Center (7,261) Pittsburgh, PA |
| November 19, 2021* 6:00 p.m., ACCN | | Towson | W 63–59 | 2–2 | 14 – Santos | 8 – Santos | 4 – 3 tied | Petersen Events Center (7,612) Pittsburgh, PA |
| November 24, 2021* 9:00 p.m., ACCN | | Vanderbilt | L 52–68 | 2–3 | 14 – Odukale | 6 – Tied | 2 – 3 tied | Petersen Events Center (7,460) Pittsburgh, PA |
| November 27, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ACCNX | | UMBC | L 77–87 | 2–4 | 24 – Hugley | 8 – Jeffress | 6 – Burton | Petersen Events Center (7,400) Pittsburgh, PA |
| November 30, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Minnesota ACC–Big Ten Challenge | L 53–54 | 2–5 | 25 – Hugley | 14 – Hugley | 5 – Odukale | Petersen Events Center (7,736) Pittsburgh, PA |
| December 3, 2021 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Virginia | L 56–57 | 2–6 (0–1) | 12 – Hugley | 6 – Tied | 4 – Burton | John Paul Jones Arena (14,257) Charlottesville, VA |
| December 9, 2021* 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | Colgate Gotham Classic | W 71–68 | 3–6 | 22 – Hugley | 7 – Hugley | 3 – Odukale | Petersen Events Center (7,328) Pittsburgh, PA |
| December 12, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ACCN | | Monmouth Gotham Classic | L 52–56 | 3–7 | 15 – Burton | 13 – Hugley | 2 – Tied | Petersen Events Center (7,579) Pittsburgh, PA |
| December 18, 2021* 12:00 p.m., FS1 | | vs. St. John's Gotham Classic | W 59–57 | 4–7 | 20 – Burton | 8 – Hugley | 3 – Odukale | Madison Square Garden (5,177) New York, NY |
| December 21, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ACCNX | | Jacksonville | W 64–55 | 5–7 | 28 – Odukale | 12 – Gueye | 4 – Gueye | Petersen Events Center (7,392) Pittsburgh, PA |
| December 28, 2021 8:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | Notre Dame | L 67–68 | 5–8 (0–2) | 18 – Hugley | 6 – Hugley | 3 – 3 tied | Petersen Events Center (8,656) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 5, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Louisville | L 72–75 | 5–9 (0–3) | 21 – Burton | 7 – Hugley | 3 – Odukale | KFC Yum! Center (11,973) Louisville, KY |
| January 8, 2022 4:00 p.m., ACCN | | Boston College | W 69–67 | 6–9 (1–3) | 32 – Hugley | 13 – Hugley | 4 – Odukale | Petersen Events Center (7,876) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 11, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Syracuse | L 61–77 | 6–10 (1–4) | 14 – 3 tied | 10 – Gueye | 4 – Gueye | Carrier Dome (15,214) Syracuse, NY |
| January 15, 2022 4:00 p.m., ACCN | | Louisville | W 65–53 | 7–10 (2–4) | 20 – Burton | 8 – Burton | 4 – Burton | Petersen Events Center (8,431) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 19, 2021 9:00 p.m., ACCN | | Virginia | L 61–66 | 7–11 (2–5) | 23 – Hugley | 7 – Hugley | 3 – Tied | Petersen Events Center (7,595) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 22, 2022 4:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Clemson | L 48–75 | 7–12 (2–6) | 15 – Hugley | 8 – Hugley | 3 – Odukale | Littlejohn Coliseum (7,408) Clemson, SC |
| January 25, 2022 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | Syracuse | W 64–53 | 8–12 (3–6) | 21 – Burton | 18 – Hugley | 5 – Burton | Petersen Events Center (8,066) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 30, 2022 4:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Boston College | L 56–69 | 8–13 (3–7) | 16 – Odukale | 9 – Gueye | 2 – Tied | Conte Forum (4,507) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| February 2, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Wake Forest | L 75–91 | 8–14 (3–8) | 23 – Odukale | 12 – Hugley | 5 – Burton | LJVM Coliseum (5,328) Winston-Salem, NC |
| February 5, 2022 7:00 p.m., ACCN | | Virginia Tech | L 71–76 | 8–15 (3–9) | 25 – Odukale | 6 – Burton | 4 – Burton | Petersen Events Center (8,533) Pittsburgh, PA |
| February 7, 2022 7:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Virginia Tech Rescheduled from January 1 | L 47–74 | 8–16 (3–10) | 16 – Odukale | 5 – Collier | 4 – Odukale | Cassell Coliseum (8,925) Blacksburg, VA |
| February 9, 2022 9:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Florida State | W 56–51 | 9–16 (4–10) | 25 – Horton | 8 – Hugley | 6 – Odukale | Donald L. Tucker Civic Center (6,891) Tallahassee, FL |
| February 12, 2022 3:00 p.m., ACCN | | NC State | W 71–69 | 10–16 (5–10) | 21 – Hugley | 10 – Hugley | 6 – Hugley | Petersen Events Center (8,027) Pittsburgh, PA |
| February 16, 2022 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | at North Carolina | W 76–67 | 11–16 (6–10) | 19 – Horton | 7 – Burton | 9 – Odukale | Dean Smith Center (17,270) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 19, 2022 7:00 p.m., ACCN | | Georgia Tech | L 62–68 | 11–17 (6–11) | 27 – Gueye | 12 – Gueye | 7 – Burton | Petersen Events Center (9,085) Pittsburgh, PA |
| February 22, 2022 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | Miami (FL) | L 64–85 | 11–18 (6–12) | 20 – Hugley | 7 – Hugley | 3 – Odukale | Petersen Events Center (7,360) Pittsburgh, PA |
| March 1, 2022 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | No. 4 Duke | L 56–86 | 11–19 (6–13) | 19 – Hugley | 9 – Gueye | 4 – Odukale | Petersen Events Center (12,095) Pittsburgh, PA |
| March 5, 2022 2:30 p.m., ESPNews | | at Notre Dame | L 54–78 | 11–20 (6–14) | 13 – Tied | 8 – Gueye | 4 – Burton | Edmund P. Joyce Center (8,555) South Bend, IN |
| ACC Tournament |||||||||
| March 8, 2022 2:00 p.m., ACCN | (12) | vs. (13) Boston College First round | L 46–66 | 11–21 | 15 – Hugley | 8 – Hugley | 3 – Gueye | Barclays Center (6,222) Brooklyn, NY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: — = Not ranked :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |
| Coaches | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings ^Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll.