For most of the past decade, Pitt has been a fundamental defensive team that wore down opponents with relentless man-to-man half-court defense.

Last night the Panthers unveiled a new trapping defense against the University of Buffalo that sparked a 92-45 victory at the Petersen Events Center.

The No. 17 Panthers (5-0) were trapping, jumping into passing lanes and tied a season-high with 16 steals. The aggressive approach led to 25 Buffalo turnovers and another blowout victory. Pitt has won its first five games by an average of 32 points per game. All but one of Pitt's games has been decided by 27 or more points.

"We like to get after people," said Pitt senior guard Keith Benjamin. "That's what we want to do. We don't want to lie back no more. We want to blitz ball screens like you saw tonight and trap them. We want to try to get every steal we can get our hands on and just be the aggressor and don't lie back and wait for somebody to attack us.

"It's definitely a new approach. We work every day on denying the pass. Coach says if you feel like you can get it, go for it. We're just trying to be more aggressive. You see the teams that go far are the more aggressive teams. We're still going to be more patient on defense, but if there are opportunities to take, we're going to take it now."

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said the new defensive mentality is more of a product of the Panthers feeling comfortable within their defensive principles.

"The steals really came within the framework of our defense," Dixon said. "Keith got a couple of steals. It was just Keith playing more solid than he had the past three years. He's doing it how we want to do it. To say it's a green light would be incorrect. He was doing things more solid and within the framework of our defense and being in the right place at the right time."

Pitt has not given up more than 62 points in any game this season.

Buffalo (2-3) almost upset Pitt last season in Buffalo. But the Bulls were no match for the Panthers this time. The Panthers scored 22 consecutive points after the Bulls led 4-0. They held the Bulls without a point for six minutes during that stretch which, in effect, ended the game.

At one point late in the game, Pitt led by 51 points.

"They were just so much quicker than last year," Buffalo coach Reggie Witherspoon said. "They were perfect."

The two leading scorers were by no coincidence the top two defensive players on the court. Junior forward Sam Young made four steals and Benjamin had three. Young led the way once again, scoring 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting. It was the third time this season Young scored 20 or more points in a game.

Benjamin scored a career-high 17 points off the bench. Levance Fields, Tyrell Biggs and Gilbert Brown also scored in double figures. Fields had 15 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds. Biggs had 12 and Brown 10.

The Panthers shot 51 percent from the field as a team.

But the story of this game was the defense. Buffalo had trouble getting into its offense all game as the Panthers kept interfering with their pressure defense.

"The way they ran their offense we wanted to do some things to disrupt it," Dixon said. "We got some turnovers out of it. We executed it well. We've done it before, but this is probably the most we've ever done it. We were very aggressive. We have pretty good quickness out there when we play a little smaller."

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NOTES -- Pitt's next game is Tuesday against Boston University at the Petersen Events Center. Biggs' 12 points set a career-high. ... Pitt is 8-0 for an eighth consecutive season. Buffalo forward Jawaan Alston (Albert Gallatin) had three points in 13 minutes.