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GAME NOTES: In what promises to be an entertaining Big East Conference battle, the 17th-ranked Villanova Wildcats welcome the 13th-ranked Pittsburgh Panthers to town. Pittsburgh won its first 11 games this season, so an ugly 80-55 loss to Dayton in the 12th outing was completely unexpected. The Panthers had an opportunity to get back on track against Lafayette on Wednesday, and they rolled to a 96-75 victory in that clash. Pitt is 2-1 in true road games and brings its physical style into the Pavilion. Villanova carried a six-game win streak into its most recent game against DePaul on Thursday, but that league opener resulted in a surprising 84-76 setback. The Wildcats, who are 6-0 at home, own a 10-2 overall record, and their only other loss came by one point to NC State back in November. Villanova holds a 29-26 series edge over Pittsburgh, but the Panthers have won five of the last seven meetings.

Sam Young has started all 13 games this season, and he is averaging 17.6 ppg for Pitt on the strength of his 53.1 percent shooting from the floor. Young is also pulling down 7.3 rpg, the second-best average on the roster. Levance Fields is posting 11.9 ppg, and he has dished out 65 assists for the Panthers against only 23 turnovers. Unfortunately, Fields is out indefinitely with a broken foot. DeJaun Blair is contributing 11.6 ppg and 9.2 rpg, and he has blocked 21 shots. The fourth and final double-digit scorer for Pitt is Mike Cook with 10.4 ppg, but he too is missing in action as he recently suffered a torn ACL. While racking up 79.8 ppg at the offensive end, Pitt is surrendering only 61.9 ppg on 39.5 percent shooting from the field. In the romp over Lafayette, the Panthers shot a staggering 67.3 percent from the floor, including 10-of-16 from behind the arc. They got 20 points from Keith Benjamin and 19 points from both Young and Tyrell Biggs.

Villanova played poor defense in the loss to DePaul, as the Blue Demons were able to connect on 51.1 percent of their field goal attempts. The Wildcats were also outrebounded and outscored from the foul line by a narrow margin. Corey Fisher led the way in defeat for 'Nova with 23 points, as he shot 8-of-15 from the floor, including 4-of-10 from three-point range. Dante Cunningham pitched in 16 points in defeat, and Scottie Reynolds managed 11. Reynolds is averaging 16.5 ppg this season to lead the team, as he is also tops with 56 assists. Fisher checks in with 13.0 ppg, and Shane Clark nets an additional 11.5 ppg. Cunningham is close behind with 11.4 ppg for the Wildcats, who are posting 80.2 ppg this season while holding foes to 69.6 ppg. Clearly, however, the defensive effort against DePaul was not up to par.

Go with the Wildcats at home, as they are undoubtedly eager to avenge the loss to DePaul. Expect 'Nova to pull ahead down the stretch and take advantage of a battered group of Panthers.