PITTSBURGH - The Big East tournament arrives in just a month for Pittsburgh's oft-perplexing Chris Taft, with the NCAA tournament right after that. Maybe this should motivate Taft, too: The NBA draft is only four months away.

For Taft, an enigmatic 6-foot-10 sophomore center who plays like a lottery pick one night and a potential longtime NBA benchwarmer the next, this might be the most pivotal stretch of his still-young career.

Taft still has enough time to show the consistency and intensity he sometimes lacks, the commitment to get open for good shots on offense and to contest most inside shots on defense, as he does only infrequently.

He also has time to live up to the preseason hype that he is Pitt's best pro prospect since Charles Smith in the late 1980s. A player who can take a team deep into the NCAA tournament - and not just to the round of 16, where the Panthers lost the last three seasons.

"It's February now, the time of the year when you've got to make plays," Taft said following a recent 25-point, 15-rebound effort against Providence. "I'm trying to get myself mad and fired up for these games - do something to get that chip on my shoulder. When I'm mad, I take it out on the other team."

He didn't look very upset in No. 18 Pitt's 83-78 overtime loss Saturday at West Virginia, getting only two rebounds in 30 minutes while being yanked several times by coach Jamie Dixon following defensive lapses.

Taft also disappeared at times during Pitt's unimpressive 55-44 victory over St. John's on Tuesday night, even though friends and family members were watching on TV in New York City. Then, just when it seemed Pitt (16-4, 6-3 Big East) might lose to the Red Storm for the second time this season, Taft and 6-7 Chevon Troutman took over at both ends of the court during a pivotal 10-2 run.

That kind of play illustrates Dixon's biggest dilemma: How to get Taft to play a solid 32 minutes every night, not just in occasional bursts of 5-6 minutes. It's also a trait that worries pro scouts, who would like to see him dominate more than just once every few games.

Even with the talent he clearly possesses, Taft is only third on his team in scoring (14.1) and second in rebounding (7.1).

Taft understands the growing perception that he often seems uninterested. Maybe that's why he grabbed point guard Carl Krauser during the second half Tuesday and said, "We need to step it up right now because we can't lose this game. That's what we both tried to do."

Taft also held St. John's center Lamont Hamilton to two points and four rebounds while getting 12 points and eight rebounds himself.

"He did a real good job defensively," Dixon said. "He did a real good job on team defense, on screens and in transition."

Dixon clearly needs Taft at his best with four of Pitt's remaining seven conference games on the road.

The Panthers played in the last four Big East tournament championship games, but are only fifth in the conference standings and must finish in the top five to get a first-round tournament bye. They are a half-game ahead of Notre Dame (14-6, 6-4), which plays at Pitt on Saturday afternoon after ending Boston College's 20-game winning streak Tuesday night.

If Taft's college career is winding down, the next few weeks could be worth millions of dollars to him - or, conversely, could cost him millions should his inconsistency persist. He seemed to signal his intentions of turning pro a couple of weeks ago, when he said he rarely watches college games because he believes he is above that level.

For now, Taft said he is concentrating only on a strong finish to Pitt's season.

"I need to go out and play with a lot of energy and help my teammates out," Taft said.