A third commitment of the weekend kept up the momentum for Pitt in the aftermath of a roster exodus, as Alabama guard Jalil Bethea announced he was joining the Panthers on Sunday.
Bethea follows former BYU/Washington forward Dominique Diomande and North Carolina/West Virginia guard Jonathan Powell as the players Pitt has grabbed from the transfer portal.
Bethea, a Philadelphia native, was the 2024 Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year coming out of Archbishop Wood and a five-star recruit.
Before playing at Alabama in 2025-26, he began his collegiate career with Miami, appearing in 31 games (16 starts) in 2024-25.
With the Hurricanes, he averaged 7.1 points and 2.1 rebounds per game, shooting 36.8% from the floor.
This past season at Alabama, Bethea’s role diminished, as he appeared in 26 games with no starts, scoring 3.9 points with 1.7 boards per contest.
Over 57 career collegiate games, the 6-foot-5 Bethea owns a lifetime 37% shooting percentage and has shot from deep at a 32% clip.
While Bethea, Diomande and Powell now join the fold, Pitt has more work to do in replacing guards Brandin Cummings and Omari Witherspoon, forwards Roman Siulepa and Papa Amadou Kante, plus center Kieran Mullen, all of whom entered the transfer portal.
