By BRENDAN McGAIR

Sports writer

PROVIDENCE – With eight straight 20-win seasons and seven (going on eight) consecutive NCAA Tournament berths to its credit, Pittsburgh has established itself not just as top-flight Big East power, but a program worthy of national attention. The spotlight continues to shine with flair upon the Steel City, witnessed by the No. 1 ranking the Panthers were appointed with yesterday.

The winning ways, first sprouting under Ben Howland before kicking into a higher gear under current head coach Jamie Dixon, has vaulted the Panthers into the same rarified air with some of the game’s more traditional powers. Like North Carolina, Duke and fellow conference member Connecticut, Pittsburgh has been able to maintain a winning aura despite the cyclical nature of college basketball.

Like an assembly line, the Panthers are the business of churning out high quality products. This season’s edition is no exception. Perched near the top of the Big East standings once again, Dixon’s team carries a 25-2 mark heading into tonight’s game against Providence College.

Under Howland, Pittsburgh came of age with the reputation of a tough, in-your-face defense that can reduce the most prolific offenses to rubble. An assistant under Howland, Dixon inherited those hard-working tactics, yet under the sixth-year coach’s surveillance, basketball in Western Pennsylvania has also been a work of art.

Scoring points might not be the first thing that jumps to mind when discussing Pittsburgh, but the Panthers have proven all season there’s plenty of firepower for foes to contend with. With a NBA-esque frontcourt and the league’s second-ranked 3-point attack, Pittsburgh is spoiled with the best of both worlds. The Panthers average 78 points while surrendering a paltry 62.3, stats that rank them in the top-five in each Big East category.

Corralling Pitt’s attack is an opponent’s nightmare, something Providence can lecture the rest of the Big East on. Eight consecutive defeats have ensued since the Friars’ last win over the Panthers in 2001. Many of the outcomes haven’t even been close with Pittsburgh winning going away (14-point differential).  

“It doesn’t get any easier for us,” said Providence head coach Keno Davis, whose squad is running out time and games to keep their postseason prospects alive. “I would expect on a Senior Night with (Pittsburgh) coming in that our guys would want to finish [the home portion of the slate] up strong and will give everything they’ve got.”

It’s hard to study at Pittsburgh’s roster without drawing the conclusion that Dixon’s players embody the hard-working culture of the city they call home. The most obvious examples are forwards Sam Young and DeJuan Blair. A sophomore, Blair was easily the best player on the floor last Monday against Connecticut, the team Pitt replaced atop the polls. The 6-foot-6, 220-pounder went off for 22 points and 23 points against Hasheem Thabet and the rest of Huskies. The Big East’s top chairman of the boards, Blair has grabbed 41 rebounds over the past two games.

In Young, the Panthers have a forward whose game stretches from the lowpost to the perimeter. Pitt’s leading scorer swished four 3-pointers en route to his 25-point outburst against UConn. Young, whose 18-point average ranks him seventh in the Big East, followed up with 16 points in Pittsburgh’s 80-61 thrashing of winless De Paul on Saturday.

The Panther in charge of directing the traffic is Levance Fields. A senior point guard who tops the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio, it was Fields, not Young nor Blair, delivering the biggest points in Pitt’s 76-68 takedown of Connecticut.

After missing his first seven shots, Fields made up for lost time by burning UConn for 10 points and two backbreaking treys over the final three minutes. Pitt’s potency extends to the bench, where Dixon stores freshman Ashton Gibbs, the Big East’s No. 2 shooter from downtown (46 percent, 26 makes).

Asked if this could potentially be his best team at Pitt, Dixon answered, “I’ve said all along this club could be good as any we’ve had.”

While finishing atop the Big East standings remains Pittsburgh’s top objective, Dixon knows bigger things could potentially be in store, most notably a coveted No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. That would, in the coach’s eyes, make the road to the Final Four – a holy grail that’s eluded the Panthers during this near-decade run – much smoother.

“Often teams that get a No. 1 seed are kept close to home, almost in their hometown,” said Dixon, owner of a 156-43 win in five-plus seasons at Pitt.

***

RIM RATTLERS: Providence is 1-10 all-time against No. 1 teams. … This marks the second time this season Pitt has occupied top honors in the polls. The Panthers held the top spot from Jan. 5-19. Pittsburgh also becomes the first team this season to jump back to No. 1 after falling from the lofty perch. … Fields tops the Big East with 7.5 assists, which places him third in the country.