PITTSBURGH — Opponent after opponent tried to control 7-foot center Aaron Gray of Pittsburgh and failed. Aware of that dismal track record, Providence attempted another approach — and it didn't work, either.

Gray took control inside to finish with 22 points after sitting out much of the first half in foul trouble, and the seventh-ranked Panthers rallied to shake off stubborn Providence's upset bid and win 74-68 Saturday.

"He's a smart player and they know when to look for him," Providence coach Tim Welsh said. "We took the 3-pointers away from them but they made us pay inside."

The Panthers came into the game leading the Big East in 3-point shooting at 43 percent, but were held to 5-of-13 beyond the arc as Providence was the first Big East team to heavily rely on a man-to-man defense against them.

Pitt (22-3, 10-1 Big East) won its fifth in a row and 12th in 13 games despite playing sluggishly most of the game against a conference opponent it has dominated of late, winning seven in a row and nine of 11 against the Friars.

Gray didn't play in the final 8Z\x minutes of the first half after drawing his second foul, and Providence (15-8, 5-5) took advantage to earn a 34-33 halftime lead. The Friars, winless in Pittsburgh since December 1998 and 3-17 there in Big East play, built their lead to 42-36 early in the second half.

Gray scored inside on Pitt's next two possessions, starting an 11-1 run that gave the Panthers the lead for good at 47-43 following Gray's tap-in with 13:25 remaining. Gray, scoring more than 20 points for the first time in six games, made 10 of 17 shots and added seven rebounds — even though Providence held a 41-33 rebounding edge.

"I think they're a team that could wind up in the NCAA tournament," Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. "I thought we could have played better, but I always think that way."

The turning point might have been when Gray drew his third foul with about 16 minutes remaining but stayed in the game for another 40 seconds — long enough to get another basket — before being pulled for about a minute.