Three games in three days against teams with different styles gave Pitt coach Jamie Dixon a chance to see how his team could adapt to changing game plans without much preparation time.

Pitt completed the first three games of the Hispanic College Fund Challenge undefeated after double-digit victories against Houston Baptist, North Carolina A&T and Saint Louis. Playing in early season tournaments gives coaches a chance to simulate conference tournaments and the NCAA tournament, when preparation between games is minimal.

While none of those opponents are knocking on the door of the Top 25, Dixon came away pleased because the Panthers demonstrated an ability to win under different circumstances each day.

Dixon was especially pleased with the 69-58 victory Sunday night against Saint Louis, a team that runs a deliberate offense and plays good defense. In seasons past, a game against Saint Louis would have been like watching an intrasquad scrimmage, but this season the Panthers want to play an up-tempo game to take advantage of their athleticism.

When Saint Louis got control of the tempo and forced Pitt into a low-scoring game, the Panthers fell back on their old style and pulled away late for the win.

"We didn't play the No. 1 team, but we played two teams that will probably be in the NCAA tournament," Dixon said. "North Carolina A&T will probably win their conference and Saint Louis returns four starters from a team that won [20] games. It's a good start to a season.

"If it was easy, everyone else would be doing it, but they're not. If you look at other people and who they're playing ... This was a dangerous game. We knew it would be a low-possession game. [Saint Louis] is going to grind you. They're experienced and well-coached."

The Panthers showed off their new transition game against Houston Baptist, which employs full-court pressure defense and a fastbreak offense. The Panthers won, 103-62, the most points scored by a Pitt team since a December 1995 game against Long Island.

The following day against North Carolina A&T, Pitt had to win the game with outside shooting. Aggies coach Jerry Eaves, noticing Pitt shot only 29 percent from 3-point range against Houston Baptist, packed it down against the Panthers' post players and forced their 3-point shooters to win the game.

The Panthers responded by making 12 of 27 shots from behind the arc and won easily, 88-61.

Then came Saint Louis, which played at a completely different pace. The Billikens gave the Panthers all they could handle for 30 minutes before Pitt finally pulled away. Not only did Dixon get to see his team excel in a low-possession game with a defensive posture, he got to see how they performed in a close game under pressure.

"That's why the coaches scheduled like this," point guard Levance Fields said. "[Saint Louis] was a great opponent for this game. We weren't able to get up and down like we would like, but it was something we knew we'd have to deal with throughout the season. We think we did very well doing it. We didn't lose our heads or get mad. We knew we wouldn't be able to get as many points as we did the first two games, so we had to settle down, execute plays better and step it up on defense. And that's what we did."

Making it out of the first weekend unscathed is not a given anymore in college basketball. Two teams ranked above Pitt in the Top 25 lost last week. Former No. 18 Southern California got blown out by Mercer on its home floor as did then-No. 20 Kentucky against Gardner-Webb. Both fell out of the rankings this week, while the Panthers rose to No. 19.

Next up for Pitt is a game Thursday against Mississippi Valley State.