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FACTS & STATS: Site: Heinz Field (65,000) -- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Television: ESPN. Home Record: Connecticut 2-2, Pittsburgh 3-2. Away Record: Connecticut 1-2, Pittsburgh 0-2. Neutral Record: Connecticut 0-0, Pittsburgh 0-0. Conference Record: Connecticut 1-1, Pittsburgh 1-1. Series Record: Connecticut leads, 4-3.

GAME NOTES: The Connecticut Huskies look to win their second straight Big East Conference affair Wednesday night against the Pittsburgh Panthers, who have lost two consecutive games.

Connecticut snapped a two-game losing streak with October 15th's 16-10 win over South Florida. The Huskies have endured plenty of heartbreak this season, with losses to Iowa State, Western Michigan and Vanderbilt coming by a combined 14 points. Connecticut will begin a three-game homestand starting November 5th, hosting Syracuse.

Pittsburgh enters Wednesday night off a bye week and losers of two straight, the most recent defeat coming two weeks ago in a non-conference loss to Utah at home. It was an ugly loss for the Panthers, who compiled just 120 yards of total offense, and committed three turnovers. Pitt has the meat of its Big East schedule remaining, including matchups with Cincinnati and West Virginia in two of its final five games.

Connecticut leads the all-time series against Pitt, 4-3.

The Huskies' offense didn't score a touchdown in a gritty win over South Florida, but got a quality performance out of running back Lyle McCombs and solid kicking from David Teggert, who nailed three field goals. McCombs, who ran for 130 yards on 32 carries, has been the workhorse for Connecticut all season. Averaging 100.7 yards per game, McCombs has received at least 20 carries in the last four games, two of which he posted 30 or more carries. McCombs is well on his way to a 1,000-yard rushing season should he stay healthy, as he has garnered 705 yards this season with four touchdowns, and has four 100-yard rushing games this season.

Connecticut is averaging 320.2 yards and 22.2 points per game this season.

The passing game is spearheaded by Johnny McEntee, who hasn't been terribly efficient (112.3) nor has he thrown for alot of yards (1,204), with six touchdowns against four interceptions. Three of those interceptions came against Vanderbilt on September 10, as McEntee hasn't thrown a pick in the last four games, and has been steady despite Connecticut giving up nearly 3.5 sacks per game. He has recorded one 300-yard passing game this season (22- of-39 for 300 yards and four touchdowns against Western Michigan), and his top target is Isiah Moore (27 catches, 353 yards). Kashif Moore has three touchdown catches this season.

Connecticut's defense held the explosive USF offense to a modest 339 yards last time out, forcing four fumbles and a 3-of-11 conversion rate on third down by the Bulls. Connecticut is fourth in the Big East in total defense (351.1) and points allowed per game (20.7), and is ninth nationally in run defense, allowing just 89 yards per game. The Huskies' defense allowed just 93 rushing yards combined in back-to-back weeks against Western Michigan and West Virginia, but surrendered 175 yards last weekend against the Bulls. The defense has played opportunistic football so far in 2011, recording 10 interceptions and six fumbles, with three of those takeaways being returned for touchdowns. Kendall Reyes leads the Big East with 11 tackles for loss, while Jory Johnson is third in the league with 61 tackles.

Heading into the matchup with Utah, Ray Graham had rushed for 226 and 159 yards respectively. But the Utes swarmed Graham, holding him to just 46 yards rushing, and to make matters worse, forced three turnovers and sacked Pitt quarterbacks six times.

Graham is still the nation's second leading rusher, averaging an impressive 134.1 yards per game, and has scored nine touchdowns. He has added 30 catches for 200 yards receiving, and is clearly the focus of a Pitt offense that has struggled to get consistent quarterback play. Tino Sunseri has thrown for just 1,204 yards, and has more interceptions (7) than touchdowns (5). Trey Anderson saw his most extensive action of the season against Utah, but completed just five-of-19 passes for 12 yards and two interceptions. Pitt is ranked 112th nationally in passing efficiency (104.7), and allows more sacks than any other team in the country per game (4.8).

Still, the offense has shown the ability to score, especially in games against South Florida and Iowa this season. Pitt averages 25.2 points per outing, and post 342.1 yards per game.

A Buddy Jackson 98-yard kickoff return and a blocked punt return for a touchdown by Antwaun Reed gave Pitt its only two touchdowns against Utah. The defense played well in the red zone, forcing three field goals in four trips, and held the Utes to just 251 total yards. Overall, Pitt is allowing 370.5 yards (120.7 rushing, 249.8 passing) and 24 points per game. The Panthers, despite having just seven takeaways this season, are an up-tempo unit that get pressure. Pitt is 13th in the country with three sacks per game and tied for seventh with eight tackles for loss per outing. Aaron Donald is tied for the Big East lead in sacks, posting five this season. Max Gruder is second in the league in tackles with 62 stops.

Despite a two-game losing streak, Pitt is still the better team at home and should benefit from last week's bye. Graham has been a consistent playmaker all season long, especially at home, and his struggles against Utah won't likely be replicated this weekend with the Huskies coming to town. Connecticut picked up an important win over South Florida last weekend, and played soundly on both sides of the ball. Scoring is an issue with this team, as the Huskies haven't scored an offensive touchdown in each of its last two games.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Pitt 28, Connecticut 17