Pitt redshirt sophomore Papa Amadou Kante will undergo an arthroscopic right knee procedure and miss the remainder of the season, the Panthers announced Friday morning.
Kante, a 6-foot-10 senior from Dakar, Senegal, had been limited to eight appearances for Pitt this season. He most recently played Nov. 28 in the Panthers’ buzzer-beating win over vs. Ohio State at home.
“We’re disappointed for Papa to have this setback after working so hard to return to the court after missing the 2023-24 season with a knee injury,” coach Jeff Capel said in a statement. “He’s shown tremendous resilience throughout his time in our program and we know he will attack this process with the same determination.”
Kante averaged 2.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 14.1 minutes this season.
As Capel alluded to, Kante had his entire 2023-24 season erased due to a previous knee surgery. The following season, he played in 22 games off the bench for Pitt, averaging 2.1 points and 1.1 rebounds per contest.
RELATED
• Pitt men let lead slip away, lose at Miami in ACC opener
• Pitt throttles Penn State in Hershey, riding career-high 28 points from Roman Siulepa
• Rivalry review as Pitt meets Penn State on the hardwood
Pitt (7-7, 0-1 ACC) also announced Friday that sophomore forward Amdy Ndiaye, from the same city in Senegal as Kante, is no longer with the program.
Ndiaye had not appeared for the Panthers through their first 14 games.
A year ago, he made eight appearances, averaging 2.8 minutes per game.
Kante’s injury and Ndiaye’s departure deprives Capel of two additional scholarship players midway through the season.
In early October, veteran center Dishon Jackson, one of the centerpieces of Pitt’s transfer portal recruiting class, was ruled out indefinitely due to an unspecified medical condition.
Jackson, who put up 8.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game for Iowa State last season as a full-time starter, saw his career at Pitt end before it ever got underway.
Capel now heads into Saturday’s home matchup with Clemson with 10 remaining scholarship players and three big men, of which senior Cam Corhen is the only regular rotational member.
True freshman Henry Lau has yet to suit up this season, while Kieran Mullen, another true freshman, is averaging only seven minutes per game.