As the Panthers vanquished four teams in four days, the mid-major coach took in much of the action.

Tonight, Vermont's Mike Lonergan will be afforded a more up-close glimpse at the No. 3-ranked Panthers (8-0).

"They are impressive," said the fourth-year coach. "Since I've been here, at least on paper, they are by far the best team we've played."

Pitt, which won its first eight games by average margin of 20.8 points, will face a sneaky challenge when Vermont (4-2) visits Petersen Events Center.

At first blush, the Catamounts look like another overmatched mid-major team shipped in to be throttled by the Panthers.

But Vermont could easily be undefeated. The Catamounts' losses came in overtime -- to Maryland and George Mason.

Vermont fell to George Mason, 80-79, in the opener. Six days later, the Catamounts took Maryland to the brink in an eventual 89-74 loss on Nov. 21 in College Park, Md. Maryland needed a 3-pointer with six seconds left in regulation to force overtime in coach Gary Williams' 400th career victory.

"We're two points away from being 6-0," Lonergan said.

The Catamounts own a 31-point victory over Yale -- the same Ivy League team that won at Oregon State two weeks ago -- and handed host Delaware its most lopsided loss of the season (78-63), more than Big East teams Rutgers and Seton Hall.

Vermont has won three in a row since losing to Maryland.

"We matched up well with Maryland -- they aren't proven inside," Lonergan said. "Pittsburgh may not have the height, but they are big inside. That is really concerning to us."

A pair of All-America East players -- junior forward Marqus Blakely and senior guard Mike Trimboli -- lead Vermont. Blakely averages 18.3 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and ranks in the top 20 in the nation in blocked shots (2.8) and steals (2.8).

Trimboli, one of 34 nominees for the Bob Cousy award given to the nation's top point guard, has moved past former Perry star Eddie Benton on the Catamounts' all-time assist list.

Another starter, 6-foot-4 junior wing Maurice Joseph, is a Michigan State transfer. He is shooting 36.6 percent from the field with 10 turnovers and three assists.

Lonergan said the 6-5 Blakely is "having a great year," but the star forward won't be helping on Pitt's DeJuan Blair.

"We don't want Blakely anywhere near Blair," Lonergan said, "because we don't want him in foul trouble."

Pitt is 83-1 in its past 84 home games against non-conference opponents but has stumbled in the first halves recently. The Panthers trailed each of their past three opponents -- Texas Tech, Washington State and Duquesne -- by at least three points before pulling away in the second half.

"I don't know why we are coming out slow," guard Jermaine Dixon said after Pitt's 27-point rout over Duquesne on Wednesday. "Maybe we got a little overconfident. We just need to start picking it up from the start."

Lonergan knows Pitt's front line. He recruited Young out of Friendly (Md.) High School and has seen him play "a million times," most recently the MVP showing during Pitt's Big East championship run.

Lonergan, who was at the Big East tournament because Vermont had finished its season, also tried to land senior power forward Tyrell Biggs while an assistant at Maryland four years ago.

"Back then, he wasn't thought of as a real tough guy," Lonergan said. "But he's tough now. They don't always arrive tough. But at Pitt, they get tough."