Bubbly Stanford needs win in ACC tournament opener vs. surging Pitt
CHARLOTTE -- Stanford might be on the NCAA Tournament bubble as it begins play in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament this week.
The Cardinal's opponent in the first round Tuesday afternoon is Pitt, which was on a different bubble over the weekend.
No. 10 seed Stanford (20-11) has been trending in the right direction with four consecutive victories to reach the 20-win mark for the second season in a row.
Stanford coach Kyle Smith said the Cardinal have learned plenty the past couple of weeks, with players filling roles well.
"You don't have to be a hero," said Smith, who is the first Stanford coach to win 20-plus games in each of his first two seasons.
The latest success for the Cardinal came with Saturday's 85-84 victory at North Carolina State, boosted largely by Ebuka Okorie's 33 points.
Okorie is the ACC's leading scorer at 23.1 points per game, which ranks fifth nationally.
No. 15 seed Pitt (12-19) was in danger of missing the ACC tournament until some good results the past couple of weeks.
Pitt needed Saturday's 71-69 overtime victory at Syracuse in order to claim the final spot in the ACC field.
Panthers coach Jeff Capel has acknowledged that his job status is a topic for many fans, having made one NCAA Tournament appearance in his first seven seasons.
"There's a lot of noise around the program and our group has continued to fight and battle, even in the midst of all of that," Capel said. "My stuff has maybe been a distraction to them, but they haven't shown that to me. I'm proud of them."
By winning three of their last five games, the Panthers are enjoying their best stretch of the season since November.
Yet they have a recent loss to Stanford, which prevailed 75-67 on Feb. 25 at home. Okorie racked up 34 points in that game, which Pitt led at halftime.
Smith said Stanford fared well last week in a rematch with Notre Dame, so he's hoping the same upgrades will continue to be present with any repeat opponents that will be part of the ACC tournament experience.
Pitt doesn't have a player among the ACC's top 25 scorers. The Panthers are led by Cameron Corhen's 13.2 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He had 22 points in the first meeting with Stanford.
The winner meets seventh-seeded NC State on Wednesday.