No, seriously. They nearly knocked off Duke last year in the NCAA Tournament as a #15 seed. They are the class of the Atlantic Sun.

Belmont, which counts country music stars Lee Ann Womack, Brad Paisley and Trisha Yearwood among its graduates, is favored to win its fourth consecutive Atlantic Sun Championship. Last season, the Bruins beat a Big East school (Cincinnati) and an SEC school (Alabama), both on the road, before losing its upset bid against No. 2 seed Duke, 71-70, in Washington, D.C. in the NCAA first round.

Belmont, which went 25-9 last season, led the Blue Devils in the final minute, losing on Gerald Henderson’s coast-to-coast layup with 12 seconds to play. The effort earned the Bruins a standing ovation from the fans at the Verizon Center.

“I know how good they have been over the years,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon. “They are a very good shooting team.”

Belmont ranked fourth in Division I last season in 3-pointers made per game (10.5). The philosophy hasn’t changed this season despite the deeper 3-point line. If anything, the extra foot has helped a squad loaded with sharpshooters. In two games this season the experienced Bruins are shooting 41.1 percent from behind the arc, making 11.5 per game.

In other words, Pitt’s perimeter defense will get a test. And if they get hot from outside, it could be a rough ride.

This is the first of three games home games not to be televised. Depressing. Big props to the Pitt Athletic Department for making the video feed available on their site. Especially the FREE portion.

Pitt’s three-game PantherVision Network broadcast package will include the matchup against 2008 NCAA Tournament participant Belmont (Nov. 25), City Game rivalry against Duquesne (Dec. 3) and contest against Vermont (Dec. 6).

Internet game broadcasts will include live game action, post-game interviews, statistic graphics, score updates, live play-by-play and color commentary. John Sanders along with former Pitt basketball standout Curtis Aiken will handle play-by-play and color analyst duties respectively. Director of PantherVision Production Paul Barto will oversee production.

A link to the broadcast can be found prior to each game on the www.pittsburghpanthers.com home page, Basketball Game Day Central, and Panthers on the Air. The new Panthers All-Access platform runs on Microsoft Silverlight technology making it faster and easier to navigate.

I really have to credit the athletic department for making it free. This would have been an easy way to push the subscription to All-Access, but instead they are making it available to all.