PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh set out on its journey into the NCAA tournament on Tuesday, hoping the trip lasts longer than it has in the past.

Pitt has been one of the top regular-season programs in the nation for much of this decade, but that hasn't translated into great NCAA tournament success.

Pitt (27-7), a No. 3 seed in the West region, will play 14th-seeded Wright State (23-9) Thursday in Buffalo. The Panthers are one of only 12 teams to qualify for the tournament in each of the past six seasons.

The Panthers, who are ranked No. 13 in the nation, have gone 160-40 over that span, a winning percentage of .800 — fifth-best in the nation.

Still, the Panthers have not advanced past the third round of the tournament. In its past two appearances, Pitt has not made it to the final 16.

"I think we've done a lot of great things as a program the past five or six years, but no one's really satisfied," senior forward Levon Kendall said. "We've been working our way into the upper echelon of schools in the country, as far as winning percentages and stuff like that.

"The next step is to get past the Sweet 16 and make a further run into the tournament."

In its most recent trips to the tournament, Pitt lost as a favorite to a team that was not from a so-called "power" conference. In 2002, Kent State, a No. 10 seed, upset No. 3 Pitt. The following year, Marquette — then of Conference USA — beat the Panthers in the third round.

Two years ago, Pitt entered the tournament with its lowest seed this decade — No. 8 — and made its quickest exit, losing in the first round to Pacific.

Last year it was No. 13 Bradley that ousted the fifth-seeded Panthers in the second round.

While making it to San Jose for the West regional would seem to be a reasonable goal, some Panthers are thinking bigger than that.

"Anything short of the Final Four, I think is a disappointment for us," senior guard Antonio Graves said. "I think we have guys that can get it done, and, as a team, we have the chemistry and the bench, so I don't think there's any more excuses. We just have to bring our 'A' game every night."

"We look forward to trying to go out there and do our best every single year," junior guard Ronald Ramon said. "But as of right now, we try to just worry about one game at a time."