The Pitt men's basketball team competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and plays their home games in the Petersen Events Center.

The Panthers were retroactively recognized as the pre-NCAA tournament national champion twice by the Helms Athletic Foundation and once by the Premo-Porretta Power Poll.

[4] Those teams were led by National Player of the Year, 3-time All-American and Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Charlie Hyatt.

[5] He also developed the widely emulated Figure Eight Offense and also experimented with various conditioning techniques, including the use of oxygen on the bench.

Under Carlson, and led by two-time All-American Claire Cribbs, Pitt continued success through[6] the 1930s winning four Eastern Intercollegiate Conference championships.

Robert Timmons took over as head coach from Carlson for the 1953–54 season and led by two-time All-American and Helms Foundation Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Don Hennon, appeared in two NCAA tournaments during the late 1950s.

With All-American Billy Knight, Ridl led Pitt to the Elite Eight in 1974, with early round victories over St. Joseph's and Furman.

Following the graduation of Knight and Martin, Pitt made an NIT appearance the following year, Ridl's last before retiring.

Grgurich was succeeded by Lafayette coach Dr. Roy Chipman who began Pitt's rollercoaster-like ride back to national significance.

Chipman's Panthers enjoyed similar success the following season, defeating archrival West Virginia for their last Eastern Eight tournament Championship, energized by remarks by WVU Coach Gale Catlett.

Led by All-Americans Charles Smith and Jerome Lane, Pitt would capture its first two regular season Big East Championships and secure several top 10 rankings reaching as high as number two in the nation.

After the departures of Smith and Lane, Pitt basketball continued to have a national, if not inconsistent, impact with players such as Sean Miller, Brian Shorter, Jerry McCullough, and Eric Mobley.

Despite highly regarded recruiting classes and stars such as Mark Blount and Vonteego Cummings, Pitt advanced to only one NIT in five seasons under Willard.

In Howland's second season (2000–01), the Pitt team, led by senior standout Ricardo Greer and All-American guard Brandin Knight, advanced to the Big East tournament championship game and NIT.

Jamie Dixon, Howland's assistant at Northern Arizona and Pitt, was named head coach of the team in 2003.

Having lost the talents of Sam Young, DeJuan Blair and Levance Fields, the Panthers were picked in a pre-season Big East poll to finish ninth in the conference.

In 2010–11, Pitt won the regular season Big East title and, for a second time in the program's history, earned a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

The Atlantic Coast Conference announced in September 2011 that Pitt and Syracuse would be leaving the Big East and had been accepted as members of the ACC, which would grow from 12 to 14 teams.

"[13] Dixon, however, departed to take the head coaching position at his alma mater, TCU, on March 21, 2016, after Pitt grew dissatisfied with his team's results and lowered his contract buyout clause to make it easier for him to leave.

The disappointing season was punctuated by a blowout home loss to #1 Virginia on senior night, during which the Panthers managed only 7 first half points against the Cavaliers.

The Zoo cheers on the Panthers from the bottom tier of the stands at the Petersen Events Center, primarily across from the teams' benches and on the baselines under the baskets.

Another spill-over from the gridiron, the Panthers' third-most frequently-played opponent is the Penn State Nittany Lions, whom they have played 148 times.

[30] The series intensified during the first decade of this century, during which both teams were highly competitive in the Big East and made numerous appearances in both the AP Top 10 and NCAA Tournament.

[31] Pitt men's basketball teams of 1927–28 (21–0) and 1929–30 (23–2) were recognized as national champions both popularly[32] and by the Helms Athletic Foundation.

The 1930 game in particular helped Pittsburgh legend Charley Hyatt cement his place in history by scoring 27 points, including a last second game-winning shot, at the defending national champions and assumed #1 squad Montana State.

[34] Starting with the NCAA rule change regarding exempt tournaments in the 2006–07 season, Pitt has participated in an event every year, with the exception of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Charley Hyatt won the National Player of the Year in 1929–30, he was the America's leading scorer that season (his second time as leading scorer) and made a last second basket to win the National Title Game with 27 points against what many considered the best team in the country.

A Pitt player has achieved Consensus First Team All-American, as listed in the Official NCAA Records Book, on nine occasions.

[39] In addition, Don Hennon, Billy Knight and Jerome Lane received Consensus Second Team All-American status.

Two Pitt players have earned Academic All-American status from the College Sports Information Directors of America.