The Elite Eight banner was raised to the rafters. A video tribute featuring highlights from last season was played. The Petersen Events Center was rocking for opening night.

Then, it went silent. For a long time.

And then, finally, Pitt decided to give the fans something to cheer about again.

The Panthers averted a shocking upset by staging a 13-point, second-half comeback to defeat Wofford, 63-60, last night.

Pitt trailed by 13 with 16:22 remaining and by nine with six minutes to go. With the game starting to get away, the Panthers turned to their two most veteran players to lead the charge. Brad Wanamaker got the Panthers close and Gary McGhee finished the job, scoring the go-ahead points with 2:28 remaining on a three-point play after grabbing an offensive rebound.

McGhee went almost 37 minutes between scoring, but he scored twice in less than a minute near the end -- both off offensive rebounds -- to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

"It was fun to watch happen," Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. "It was great for Brad and great for Gary to make the big plays down the stretch."

While McGhee scored the game's deciding points, Wanamaker might have scored the most important points.

Pitt trailed, 54-45, with less than six minutes remaining before Wanamaker took over the game. He scored eight consecutive points, including a 3-point play and three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt, to get the Panthers to within three with 4:05 left.

"I felt like I had to finally step my game up," Wanamaker said. "The team was going to go as I went."

For Pitt, it was an exhilarating victory. For Wofford, it was a devastating defeat.

Wofford, coming off its first winning season in 15 years, led for 27 consecutive minutes, with long stretches of comfortable leads. The Terriers of the Southern Conference had five returning starters to lean on down the stretch, but, just when a program-making victory seemed assured, Pitt ripped it from their hands.

"This sounds strange against a team like Pittsburgh, but our guys are devastated that we didn't finish the deal," Wofford coach Mike Young said. "We feel like we blew it. They flat-out made more plays then we did down the stretch."

Pitt held Wofford to six points over the final six minutes. After getting outrebounded by seven in the first half, the Panthers clamped down in the second half and did not give the Terriers second opportunities.

Wanamaker led Pitt with 15 points and freshman center Dante Taylor added 13 points and five rebounds.

Dixon started five new players for the first time in his career, and it showed in the early stages. There were uncharacteristic defensive breakdowns, bad turnovers and poor blockouts on rebounds. That was the most disappointing part for Dixon, whose program was built around defense and rebounding.

Even though things looked bleak with a 31-24 deficit at the intermission, Dixon took a different approach in the locker room.

"I didn't hop all over them," he said. "I told them, 'I guarantee you that we play better in the second half.' It was almost like we were too pumped up to play."

That was the result of the emotional pregame ceremony when the players watched taped video messages from the four departed players who meant so much to the team a year ago -- Sam Young, DeJuan Blair, Levance Fields and Tyrell Biggs.

"It was real emotional, seeing those guys," Wanamaker said. "Then, we had the jitters. It was everyone's first start, so we were nervous."

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NOTES -- Noah Dahlman led Wofford with 20 points and seven rebounds. ... Pitt was 4 for 15 from 3-point range and 11 for 19 from the free-throw line. ... Wofford was 7 for 19 from behind the arc and 9 for 9 from the line. ... Omar Calhoun, a 6-foot-3 sophomore shooting guard from Christ the King in New York, took an unofficial visit yesterday and attended the game.

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