Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Pitt's Ronald Ramon pulls in a rebound against Marquette last night in New York. Click photo for larger image. Scouting Report Matchup: Pitt (26-6) vs. Louisville (23-8), 9 p.m. today, Madison Square Garden, New York. TV, radio, Internet: ESPN, WWSW-FM (94.5), WBGG-AM (970), www.pittsburgh-panthers.com. Pitt: Coming off an 89-79 victory over Marquette. ... Senior C Aaron Gray led the way with 22 points and 10 rebounds. ... Sophomore F Sam Young had 17 points and Mike Cook added 16. ... The Panthers were 6 for 11 from 3-point range, snapping a shooting slump from behind the arc. ... Lost to Louisville at home, 66-53, Jan. 12. It was the worst home loss in the history of the Petersen Events Center. Louisville: Beat West Virginia, 82-71, in double overtime. ... Terrence Williams led the way with 21 points. ... Earl Clark had 17 and David Padgett 16. ... The Cardinals shot 46 percent from the field, but only managed 13 shots in the second half when West Virginia mounted a big comeback and forced overtime. ... This is Louisville's first appearance in the Big East semifinal round. Hidden stat: This is the first time since 1987 that Syracuse or Connecticut is not in the semifinal round. Related articles Big East Notebook: Gray earns All-America honors Big East Roundup: Hoyas hold off Wildcats, 62-57 Collier: Free-throw shooting bottom line in Pitt's win

NEW YORK -- Pitt could not stop the Marquette offense in two games earlier this season, resulting in two frustrating losses to the Golden Eagles. So last night in the third match the Panthers figured if they couldn't beat 'em, join 'em in the offensive fireworks.

Pitt had one of its best offensive games of the season and finally found a way to beat Marquette, 89-79, in a Big East Conference tournament quarterfinal game at Madison Square Garden. The Panthers advanced to the semifinal round for the sixth time in the past seven years.

Next up for Pitt is Louisville, which beat West Virginia earlier last night in another quarterfinal game. It's another opportunity for payback for the Panthers, who got embarrassed by Louisville at the Petersen Events Center, 66-53, Jan. 12. That lopsided 13-point loss was Pitt's worst home loss in the history of the Petersen Center.

"We're always looking to [play up-tempo]," Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. "We seemed to get some steals, some turnovers that got us going in transition. We made good decisions. You don't want to just do that. You have to make good decisions. You have to take the right opportunity, and I think with our seven turnovers, it obviously reflects that we did a very good job making decisions throughout the game in transition as well as the half-court [offense]."

The Panthers also played with a chip on their shoulders, the result of those previous two losses to the Golden Eagles. The thought of losing to Marquette three times in the same season lit a fire under the Panthers for the five days leading up to the game after losing to the Golden Eagles in the regular-season finale Saturday night in Milwaukee.

"It motivated us all week," junior guard Mike Cook said. "We had great practices all week. We knew in the back of our minds that we were going to get another shot at them. We wanted to prove all the doubters wrong. We wanted to prove that we are still the best team in the Big East."

Pitt was led by senior center Aaron Gray and sophomore forward Sam Young. Gray, taking advantage of the smallish Marquette forwards, scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Young scored 17. Cook (16), Levance Fields (12) and Antonio Graves (10) also scored in double figures.

	Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Pitt's Aaron Gray tries to grab a rebound against Marquette's Dan Fitzgerald and Dwight Burke in the first half last night. Click photo for larger image.

Pitt shot 49 percent from the field.

Marquette had no answer for Gray inside as he continually outworked Marquette's forwards for position on the blocks and offensive rebounds. Gray was 7 for 16 from the field and had six offensive rebounds.

"I think I had some big buckets, sometimes to stretch the lead out a little further, sometimes to stop a run that Marquette had. My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball. In position where I could score, and I was able to finish. A lot of the credit goes to my teammates."

Marquette had to play again without second-leading scorer Jerel McNeal, who missed his third consecutive game with a thumb injury. That and the fact that Marquette had to play a tough game Wednesday night against St. John's suggested Pitt would have an edge when it came to the fatigue factor.

	Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Pitt's Aaron Gray puts a shot up against Marquette's Ousmane Barro in the first half. Click photo for larger image.

Pitt led, 40-37, at halftime and that fatigue started to show some early in the second half when the Panthers opened up their biggest lead of the game after Graves made a 3-pointer from the corner to make it 49-41 with 17:12 remaining.

The Panthers pushed that lead to 60-50 a few minutes later after two Sam Young free throws. If the Panthers had any doubts it was going to be their night, they got confirmation a few possessions later when Fields banked in a 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down.

That restored the 10-point lead and seemed to deflate the Golden Eagles. After Ramon made a steal at the other end, Gray scored to make it 69-57, and the Panthers kept the Eagles at bay the rest of the way.

After a shaky performance from the free-throw line in the first half, the Panthers knocked down 12 consecutive shots from the free-throw line in the second half to maintain the lead.

	Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Pitt's Aaron Gray gets a piece of a shot by Marquette's Lazar Hayward last night.. Click photo for larger image.

Pitt led by at halftime despite going 9 for 16 from the free-throw line. The lead should have been more, but Gray missed five of those free throws, including three in a 10-second span after he was fouled twice.

Still, the Panthers led because the offense was hitting on all cylinders. They shot 50 percent (14 for 28) in the first 20 minutes. Gray and Young took it to the smaller Marquette forwards, scoring 11 and nine points apiece.

Unlike the first two meetings against Marquette, Pitt got off to a good start. The Panthers led, 17-10, after Fields made a 3-pointer with 13:16 remaining.

One stark difference in this game was the turnovers. Pitt had committed 18 in the first loss and 11 in the second.