Pitt coach Jamie Dixon wasn't about to place Tyrell Biggs' picture on a milk carton, but his starting power forward had seemed to have gone missing from the Pitt offense for more than a month.

Biggs had gone 10 games between posting double digits before he scored 13 points in Pitt's 80-61 victory against DePaul Saturday night at the Petersen Events Center.

It was a welcome sight for a team that is hoping to be firing on all cylinders by the time the postseason begins in 21/2 weeks.

"In practice we were talking, and I knew this was going to be his breakout game," sophomore center DeJuan Blair said. "This is the Biggs I know. I didn't know the Biggs the last couple of games.

"I knew it was coming. He let the game come to him. In the second half his shots went down, and he started rebounding a little bit. He started playing. He's going to come around. I wasn't worried about the way he was playing. He found his game. He came in before practice. He stayed and shot after practice. I wasn't worried about him."

It has been said that Pitt has the best three players at their positions in the Big East with Blair at center, Sam Young at small forward and Levance Fields at point guard.

DePaul coach Jerry Wainwright said junior Jermaine Dixon is the "perfect piece" for Pitt at shooting guard after Saturday night's game.

It raises the question: How much better can the Panthers be if Biggs gets back to playing the way he was earlier in the season?

Biggs scored in double figures six times in the first 16 games, capped by a season-high 16 points against South Florida Jan. 14. In the previous seven games before DePaul, Biggs averaged only 3.2 points per game. He was held scoreless in Pitt's loss at Villanova and scored two points in three consecutive games against Notre Dame, Robert Morris and DePaul in Rosemont, Ill.

Biggs had the flu against Notre Dame and didn't begin feeling well again until the past week or so.

"I didn't worry about it," Biggs said of his prolonged slump. "I knew I would get back in the flow. I was just getting back in the flow a couple of games ago. I'm good now."

Biggs, who is 6 feet 8 and weighs 250 pounds, has been a consistent threat from 3-point range this season, shooting 41 percent (16 for 39). But the part of his game that coach Jamie Dixon liked the most Saturday night was his willingness to mix it up inside where he scored most of his points off of offensive rebounds.

Biggs was 6 for 10 from the field and had three offensive boards against the Blue Demons. He was 1 for 4 from 3-point range.

"What I liked more so was in the second half where he finished some around the basket," Dixon said. "That's where he has to get his points. The [3-pointers] will come. He's going to get some open looks.

"In the second half, he had a left-handed jump hook, a couple of offensive rebounds. We need to get him finishes around the basket. The [3-pointers] will come. He's shooting a good percentage, but really, that has to be a secondary option for him. He has to get inside baskets, rebounds. Those are things that make us a better team and him a better player."

The Panthers are hoping Biggs' performance against DePaul was the start of a consistent run into the postseason. Blair knows the importance of having someone next to him on the blocks who can also grab rebounds.

"I talk to him before the tip," Blair said. "I tell him, 'We're the best big men in the country. Let's go show everybody.' When we're both playing good it's hard to stop us."