This isn’t your older brother’s Pitt vs. UConn matchup. Tonight’s game doesn’t look anything… This isn’t your older brother’s Pitt vs. UConn matchup. Tonight’s game doesn’t look anything like last year’s meeting between these two Big East powers.

The Huskies boast an entirely different starting five from the one that faltered in last year’s Elite Eight, meaning it is OK to be unfamiliar with Jim Calhoun’s bunch. The faces are different, but inconsistency still plagues this team, and that is a sign of youth. Stacking youth up against a veteran squad like Pitt usually spells disaster.

What tilts the balance even more in Pitt’s favor, though, is sheer momentum. The Panthers are playing their best basketball of the season, and the Huskies have been shaky to say the least -they have lost three of five. Throw in the fact that Pitt is playing at home, where Jamie Dixon’s crew has won 11 in a row, and the choice seems clear. Pitt will win a tighter-than-expected game against a high-scoring team still trying to find its identity.

Remember this UConn team later in the season, though, because I have a feeling Pitt will see them again.

Pitt 78, UConn 69