Pitt Basketball: Panthers Ranked No. 4 in Preseason Poll

When the USA Today/ ESPN Preseason Coaches Poll and the AP Preseason Polls were released on Thursday, the Pitt men's basketball team found itself in a familiar spot.

That's close to the top of the rankings.

Head coach Jamie Dixon's Panthers find themselves ranked No. 4 in both polls as expectations for the upcoming season continue to rise.

This is nothing familiar to Dixon though as Pitt enters a season ranked among the nation's top-5 for the fifth time in school history and fourth time in the last seven seasons. The No. 4 ranking ties for the second highest preseason national rating in Panthers history. Pitt entered the 1987-88 season rated No. 3 in the USA Today/CNN poll.

Defending national champion Duke earned the nation's No. 1 ranking, followed by No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 Kansas State, No. 4 Pitt and No. 5 Ohio State.

Pitt is one of four Big East teams ranked among the nation's top-25 including No.6 Villanova, No. 13 Syracuse and No. 21 Georgetown.

The Panthers have a ton of talent coming back and seem to get more athletic by the season.  Junior Ashton Gibbs was selected to the preseason All-Big East First Team and is just one of many Pitt stars worth keeping an eye on.

The coaches and media have spoken.  They think the Panthers are a real threat to finally get to the Final Four.

Now the Panthers have to live up to the lofty expectations.