Both Notre Dame and Pittsburgh have to win the ACC tournament in order to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament. The first step to do that would be to survive a matchup in early Tuesday action in Charlotte.

The Pitt Panthers went into Tuesday's ACC tournament opener against Notre Dame essentially needing to run the table in Charlotte to make the NCAA tournament. Instead, the Panthers got bounced after one game in a way that will sting all offseason.

Let's face it, the Pitt Panthers almost certainly weren't heading to the Big Dance this year after stumbling in conference play in a weak ACC this year.