The 2014-15 University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men’s basketball team will be an experienced group.

The Panthers return five players — Keith Burgess, Eric Matheson, Tyler Fantaskey, Lucas Pichette and Zach Smith — who averaged at least 20 minutes per game a season ago.

It’s a luxury head coach Britt Moore, whose team is picked to finish fifth in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) preseason poll, is glad to have.

“Sometimes you get experienced teams where they expect things to come easy and guys don’t work as hard. I don’t think that’s the case with us” Moore said. “I think the guys have put in the work to have a successful year. The nice part is a lot of guys know what’s going on in practice so things can go a little bit quicker. That’s a positive part of having a veteran.”

They’re a veteran team that already has a leg up in terms of game competition this season. The Panthers embarked on a trip to Montreal, where they played a pair of exhibition games, which also allowed them some extra practice time.

“It was nice, because we could see how guys react to game situations,” Moore said. “I think overall, the guys enjoyed themselves and it was good for the program.”

On the court, Burgess and Matheson will run the show from their guard positions.

Burgess, who hails from Hillside, N.J., just six miles from where the Panthers will open their season in Newark in the Rutgers-Newark Tournament, played more point guard during his first two seasons, but switched to the 2-guard spot with the arrival of Matheson, the former Ridgway star.

The changed worked out perfectly, as the duo both averaged in double figures scoring, as well as playing solid perimeter defense.

“It was a little adjustment for Keith at first, but he’s a natural scorer, he wants to get to the rim and wants to finish,” Moore said. “They compliment one another perfectly. Eric is very good with the ball in his hands and is able to find the open guy. Eric, toward the end of the season last year, was neck-and-neck with Keith as far as our best perimeter defenders. I really think we have two of the better guys in the backcourt in the league and we’ll kind of go as they go. They’re a big piece.”

In the frontcourt, Pichette (9.6 ppg.) and Fantaskey (11.1 ppg.) return to the fold.

Pichette is a true low post presence, who Moore and his staff, which includes Jesse Deloof and Dan Ziegler, are expecting big things from.

“Lucas has got all the talent to be an all-conference player and be one of the best big guys in the league, we truly believe that,” Moore said. “He has great hands, great feed, good size and good awareness on the floor. He had points last season where he dominated games.”

Fantaskey, meanwhile, offers a nice inside-out compliment. The senior from Warren led the team in three-point field goal percentage last season (39.4 percent) and is looking to build on that success.

“Tyler really stepped up as one of the better shooters in the league,” noted Moore. “You give him an open three and most of the time it’s going down. His big focus is defensively, getting better on the perimeter and keeping smaller guys in front of him, which is something we’re going to ask him to do this season.”

Another player who provides a similar skill set to Fantaskey is Smith, a 6-4 sophomore forward from Smethport, whose confidence and game grew throughout his freshman campaign.

“They’re both about 6-4 and shoot the ball pretty well,” said Moore. “Zach is a little more effective in the post and the last couple of games last season hit some big shots. I think the jump from freshman to sophomore year for him is going to be huge. He knows the speed and strength of the game and we expect a real big year from him.”

The Panthers also have some exciting options in the form of Hiree Peoples, a  6-1 senior transfer from Pitt-Titusville, as well as 6-1 junior guard Steven Owens.

Both players are very versatile, with the ability to play multiple positions.

“Hiree is very athletic and can fill in a little bit of what Brandon McClester did last year,” noted Moore. “He can play the two, three or four and realistically can guard on through five. He’s very good in the open floor and finishing at the rim. He’s a guy that has the potential to get into the starting lineup.”

Moore also feels that Owens is on the verge of breaking out.

“He’s a guy the last two years has been right on the brink of being a major contributor,” the coach said. “He can shoot the ball, he’s athletic and can defend. He does it all, it’s just translating it from practice to the game. The one spot we’re probably a little thin is the wing position, a true wing, and I think he can fit into that. He’s got an opportunity to get on the floor and show what he can do.”

Also in the frontcourt, junior forward Forrest Works worked his way into the rotation as a sophomore and will look to contribute even more as a junior.

The Bradford Area High School product played well in Canada and gives the Panthers another option in their rotation.

“Forrest has become efficient in scoring the ball and a big part of that is he put in the work in the spring and summer to get stronger,” Moore said. “That’s really translated on to the floor. Now he can catch it and finish through contact, where last year he just wasn’t quite strong enough.”

In the backcourt, junior Nick Goss (Oswayo Valley), sophomore Manny Welch (Bishop Timon) and freshman Tim Atkinson (Carlisle), are all expected to compete for playing time.

Moore noted that Atkinson is a point guard who “takes care of the ball, makes good decision and defend.”

Meanwhile, Moore praised Goss’ energy and defense and also noted that Welch has really improved since his freshman season.

“I feel like we have nine, 10 guys that get on the floor in some capacity,” Moore said. “We want to try and get up and down and push the ball and that starts with Keith and Eric. We have Tyler and Zach who can shoot the ball in transition and Lucas runs the floor well for a big guy. We’re a team that is built to get up and down the floor, we just have to commit to it, play in and play out.”

As far as expectations go, this is a confident group, after advancing to the AMCC semifinals with a win over La Roche last season.

It’s also a group that isn’t focusing on the end result, but rather taking it one day at a time.

“We discuss goals to start the year and that’s where we want to be (AMCC championship),” Moore said. “We consider that more a destination than a goal. Our goal every day is to come in and get better. We can’t win games in January and February tonight. Having that one day a time focus is the mindset that we have.”