The Pitt basketball team strutted off the floor of the Petersen Events Center last night, an impressive and not-that-close 74-69 winner against Georgetown. The victory left the Panthers, who led by 15 points early in the second half and 10 with five minutes remaining, with a 16-2 record, a seventh -- and climbing -- ranking in Division I and in first place at 4-0 and the favorite to win the prestigious Big East Conference.

Sound familiar?

It should. We've been down this path before.

We've been here for perfect and near-perfect Novembers and Decembers, which, at various points over the past five Januarys have left the Panthers with records of 15-1, 15-1, 18-0, 10-0 and 15-0. Those records were, not unexpectedly, made less pretty in league play. But in the Big East tournament, the Panthers reached the final in four of those five years and won once.

It resulted in monumental aspirations and numbingly disappointing outcomes in the NCAA tournament, where in all of these seasons the Panthers have never advanced further than the round of 16.

Which leads to this question: Does the same disappointment await this team, which not only has a similar record to its predecessors but also similar talent?

Not on the basis of what transpired last night.

This could be the best team in Jamie Dixon's four years as coach. It clearly is his most balanced and best offensive team. Unlike so many Pitt teams of the recent past, this one can shoot. Offense was often Pitt's downfall in NCAA tournament play. That could happen again but it would be surprising if it does.

It's true the Panthers lack the so-called go-to guy -- although center Aaron Gray might yet claim that role. Instead they have several players capable of big-scoring games.

Junior Mike Cook led the Panthers with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting last night. Three other players scored in double figures. As a team, the Panthers made 28 of 47 shots from the field. They had 18 assists on those 24 baskets and only seven turnovers.

"That's a very, very good team,'' Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. "When you make a mistake, they capitalize on it. Every mistake you make they capitalize on.

"All those guys have played in a lot of tough situations. They are tough people. If you focus on Gray, that can be a mistake. They surround him with guys who are very good shooters and very good passers. And he is a very good passer. Once you pay too much attention to him, he kicks it out to someone who's not going to miss.''

Pitt's guard, Levance Fields, Antonio Graves and Ronald Ramon combined to make 9 of 15 shots (60 percent). Fields played 30 minutes and had six assists and no turnovers.

Jay Bilas, a standout player at Duke in the 1980s, was in town as part of the ESPN saturation coverage of the game. Bilas is one of the more astute and articulate spokesman of the college game. He rejected the notion that the current Pitt team is pretty much the same as those of the recent past.

"They're really a lot better offensively than they have been,'' he said. "They score easier than they did in the past. They have a lot of versatility. Their guards are good and they shoot it pretty well. Gray is the focal point. Adding Cook [a transfer] gives them a different dimension. He's very active. He can put the ball on the floor and go to the basket.''

Cook is probably the most athletic small forward Pitt has had in the Howland-Dixon era, although he in no way gives the team the overall play that Jaron Brown once did. That might come, though.

The Panthers lead the Big East in 3-point shooting, converting an excellent 40 percent of those shots. A vastly improved Graves leads the conference by shooting 51 percent on his 3-point attempts (27 of 53). Ramon has made 41 percent (36 of 82). Cook hasn't shot enough 3s to be among the league leaders but he's converting on 43 percent of his tries (9 of 21).

This added offense makes a difference in many ways.

"If your offense is not consistently good, it can put a lot of pressure on your defense,'' Bilas said. "It's like a pitcher thinking he has to throw a shutout every time he goes out. It wears on you.''

As for the go-to guy.

"It's not that big of a deal,'' he said. "George Mason made it to the Final Four without a go-to guy. Besides, Pitt has a definite pro in Aaron Gray.''

It all sounds good today -- in the middle of January. How it plays out in the middle of March is something else.

But the Panthers already are considering that.

"We don't want to be the best team in November, December and January,'' said Gray. "We want to make sure we're at the top of our game in March.''