PITTSBURGH - Pittsburgh enters this week's Big East tournament seeded No. 1 for only the second time and the first since 1988. The Panthers can only hope this tournament goes better than that one.

Then, a Charles Smith- and Jerome Lane-led team coming off a 22-5 regular season figured to advance deep into the NCAA tournament, only to be upset by Villanova in the Big East semifinals and by Vanderbilt the NCAA tournament.

The Panthers appeared to have that second-round NCAA game won with a three-point lead and four seconds to play. But they lost in overtime after Barry Goheen hit two 3-pointers in the closing seconds of regulation - the second when Pitt had a foul to give.

Lane left after that season to turn pro and Pitt basketball wasn't the same for years, winning only one NCAA tournament game over the next 13 seasons.

That's where these No. 6 Panthers figure to be different. The Panthers (27-3, 13-3 in Big East) aren't one-year wonders, a team of stars assembled with the intent of taking one or two runs at the NCAA tournament before breaking up and turning pro.

Pitt has won or shared a Big East regular-season title the last three years, going 84-14, and has played in the last three Big East tournament finals. In a sport where stars regularly leave after one or two seasons - see Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse, 2003) - Pitt has an unusually experienced cast.

That's one reason why freshman center Chris Taft, the only key contributor who wasn't a member of the team that went 28-5 last season, can't wait for his first Big East tournament. That and the fact he's from New York City and is looking forward to playing before friends and family.

"I'm real excited," he said. "I can't wait to get back to Madison Square Garden."

Pitt plays the winner of Wednesday's No. 8-No. 9 game on Thursday afternoon.

While these Panthers lack the star power of that Paul Evans-coached 1988 team, it is the most successful group ever assembled at the school, with a 103-28 record over the last four seasons. Pitt is about to go to the NCAA tournament for the third straight season, the first time that's happened since they went from the 1986-87 through the 1988-89 seasons.

Julius Page and Jaron Brown are three-year starters, and junior forward Chevon Troutman also has played extensively for three seasons. Sophomore point guard Carl Krauser got valuable minutes last season behind Brandin Knight and Taft's emergence has exiled former starter Toree Morris to the bench for all but a few minutes each game.

Pitt has also shown it can play from behind, a valuable trait come tournament time. The Panthers have rallied from double-digit deficits three times in their last nine games, including Saturday's 59-45 victory over Villanova that clinched the No. 1 seed.

"All the rankings and seedings don't mean a lot once you play now," said Jamie Dixon, who coached the Panthers to a school-record 27 regular-season victories in his first season. "But these guys have done something special."

Especially on defense. The Panthers' 56.5 defensive average is the best among Top 10 teams, and their commitment to never allowing an easy basket helped them win nine of their last 11 despite a late-season scoring slump by Page.

"To me, defense is the easy part of the game," said Page, who is averaging only 7 points over his last eight games. "It's being mentally strong. If you let your offense affect your defense, to me, you're not a player. You can always stay in a game if the other team can't score."

AP-ES-03-08-04 0007EST