Until now, it seemed as if Pitt was out of the running to land Nike Sibande, a star transfer from Miami(Ohio), but that was not the case.
Sibande announced on Saturday, via his personal Twitter, that he would be joining Jeff Capel's program. The news was confirmed by Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.
The move was a surprising one, considering Sibande's seemingly limited interest in the program. When Sibande entered the transfer portal, Pitt showed interest in the guard. However, his final list consisted of five schools (Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Georgetown and Xavier), with Pitt not being included.
Nonetheless, Sibande will be welcomed into the program with open arms. As one of the most coveted transfers in the portal, Sibande averaged 13.9 points/game in 2019-2020 and 15.1 points/game across three seasons in Oxford, Ohio.
Sibande, a native of Indianapolis, Indiana, flashed his scoring ability during his time with the RedHawks. This past season, he scored 20+ points on seven occasions, including a season-high 31 points in a Mid-American Conference Tournament victory over Buffalo.
Due to NCAA transfer rules, Sibande will be forced to sit out a year unless the Panthers are able to obtain a transfer waiver for him. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the NCAA is expected to be slightly more lenient with waivers.
Sibande could fill a hole left by Trey McGowens, who transferred to Nebraska following this past season. Sibande would be a scoring upgrade from the entire 2019-2020 Pitt roster, as leading scorer Justin Champagnie averaged 12.7 points/game.
When ruled eligible, Sibande will have one season of eligibility remaining.
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