PITTSBURGH — West Virginia coach Bob Huggins made it a point to schedule back-to-back games against No. 15 Virginia and Pittsburgh to give the 18th-ranked Mountaineers a taste of what awaits when Big 12 play begins in three weeks.

“I was trying to prepare them and we flunked that test,” Huggins said.

Well, maybe not technically. It just sort of felt that way to Huggins after his team nearly let a 20-point lead get away before holding on for a 69-60 over the Panthers on Saturday night in the renewal of the “Backyard Brawl.”

“This is getting to be finals week,” Huggins said. “I hope they do better on their finals than they did tonight.”

The Mountaineers (9-1) forced just 14 turnovers, were outrebounded by six and sent the Panthers to the free-throw line 31 times. Only Jevon Carter’s occasional brilliance and some lockdown defense over the final 5 minutes prevented a staggering upset.

“They kicked our butt on the glass,” Huggins said. “I wasn’t surprised. I told our guys for two days that’s what I was afraid was going to happen.”

Carter finished with a game-high 19 points but also ran into foul trouble in the second half, watching as the Panthers nearly erased all of an 18-point halftime deficit. Daxter Miles Jr. added 15 points and Lamont West finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds and the Mountaineers won their ninth straight following a season-opening loss to Texas A&M.

Still, work remains to be done. Pitt pulled within 61-59 when Marcus Carr completed a 4-point play with 5:31 left. The Panthers, however, never got any closer. Pitt missed its last six shots and turned it over twice as West Virginia escaped.

“We knew that we could beat this team,” said Carr, who finished with 12 points. “It was a matter of time of putting it all together. We still didn’t play our best (but) it’s another step in the right direction.”