Pitt is one of five teams in NCAA Division I to advance to the third round of the NCAA tournament in each of the past three seasons. If the Panthers advance to another Sweet 16, they will have to pull an upset to do it. Actually, according to the NCAA selection committee, they will have to pull two upsets.

Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Guard Carl Krauser and center Chris Taft celebrate at the Petersen Events Center as Pitt's seeding for the NCAA tournament is announced. Click photo for larger image.

Pitt (20-8) learned yesterday it will be a No. 9 seed and will face No. 8 seed Pacific (26-3) in a first-round game Thursday in Boise, Idaho.

The past three years Pitt was favored to advance to the third round with No. 3 seeds in 2002 and 2004 and a No. 2 seed in 2003. If the Panthers beat Pacific, they likely will play Washington, the Pac-10 Conference champion and the No. 1 seed in the Albuquerque Region, in the second round.

"That's OK," point guard Carl Krauser said. "Since I've been here, I realize no one in college basketball gives us any respect. We're used to that. That's why we're used to being an underdog."

Pitt is the lowest seeded of the six Big East teams to make the NCAA field. The Panthers, ranked in the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today coaches' Top 25 all season, were judged by the selection committee as somewhere between the 33rd- and 36th-best team in Division I.

Pitt also is in a difficult bracket. In addition to No. 1 Washington, No. 4 Louisville, No. 5 Georgia Tech, No. 2 Wake Forest and No. 3 Gonzaga are all in the same draw.

"We knew it was going to happen," senior forward Chevon Troutman said. "We never get a cool place to play, close to home. It's not anything to us. We just have to go to Boise and take care of business."

		Scouting report School: Pacific (26-3) Location: Stockton, Calif. Enrollment: 4,630 Nickname: Tigers Coach: Bob Thomason, in his 17th season at Pacific The skinny: Big West Conference regular-season champions (18-0). ... Had won 22 consecutive games before losing to Utah State in the Big West title game Saturday night. ... Ranked No. 18 in Associated Press poll. ... 47-5 in its past 52 games and has the fewest losses in Division I since Jan. 1, 2004. ... Led by Big West player of the year G David Doubley (12.2 ppg, 2.9 rpg), F Christian Maraker (13.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and C Guillaume Yango (13.1 ppg, 7.4 rpg).

"I don't feel disrespected at all," sophomore center Chris Taft said. "I don't care if we're a No. 11 seed or a No. 12 seed. The whole point is we're in the tournament. We have to go out and prove to people how good we are."

Pitt is 4-3 against teams ranked among the top 50 of the Ratings Percentage Index, a winning percentage matched or bettered by only nine teams in Division I.

But Pitt was penalized for three things the selection committee considers strongly. Pitt had a poor finish to the regular season, was inconsistent all season and, most important, had a weak non-conference schedule. The Panthers finished 2-4 in their last six games, including a quarterfinal-round loss to Villanova in the Big East tournament. They had big wins on the road against Connecticut, Syracuse and Boston College but lost at St. John's and to Bucknell at home.

The biggest factor, as it was last year, was the non-conference schedule. Pitt's non-conference schedule was ranked No. 262 of the 330 teams in Division I.

"I think that's probably what the committee was looking at," athletic director Jeff Long said. "But people have to realize [we are] playing in the Big East and the way our conference is set up because of television. The best teams play twice. You know what? We have a difficult schedule. And we played some people in the non-conference schedule. ... We're not apologizing for who we schedule. Would I like to have another game of a higher quality? Yes. And Jamie and I will work to do that. But it's not as easy as people think."

So Pitt will prepare to play Pacific, the Big West Conference regular-season champions. The Tigers had a 22-game winning streak snapped Saturday night in the Big West title game. Utah State beat them, 65-52.

		Progress Report Follow the progress of the nation's best Division I basketball teams as they compete for a spot in the NCAA Final Four: Latest men's and women's brackets.

Last season, Pacific upset Providence in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Coach Jamie Dixon, who coached in the Big West as a member of Ben Howland's staff at Northern Arizona, is familiar with Pacific coach Bob Thomason and some of his personnel. Center Guillaume Yango, a 6-foot-9, 250-pound senior, leads the team in scoring with 13.1 points per game. Forward Christain Maraker (13.0 ppg) and guard David Doubley (12.2 ppg) also average in double figures.

"Their scoring comes from the inside," Dixon said. "They have good size and they're an experienced team. They have a number of guys back from the team that beat Providence last year."