WHAT'S AT STAKE: The Panthers already defeated Syracuse, Georgetown and Connectitcut to become the clear Big East favorite. Pittsburgh can further distance itself from the pack by knocking off Marquette, which has won three straight games.

CENTER

Ousmane Barro vs. Aaron Gray

OK, so he may not be living up to the whole Preseason Big East Player-of-the-Year thing, but Gray still has been a consistent presence in the paint and is good for 15 and 10 a night. The enigmatic Barro, though, has made a habit of performing well in big games (Duke, Connecticut) against more highly touted players.

POINT GUARD

Dominic James vs. Levance Fields

Fields ranks second in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.7), but the advantage goes to Marquette because James' superior off-the-ball skills are utilized through a de facto point guard rotation that has Matthews run the halfcourt offense on a regular basis.

SHOOTING GUARD

Jerel McNeal vs. Antonio Graves

Here's what we know: McNeal will play stellar defense and terrorize Graves and whoever else he is asked to guard. But we also know that he'll likely give up the ball about as many times as he takes it away. It won't matter in this particular match-up, though. McNeal's aggressiveness on both ends of the court will prevail.

SMALL FORWARD

Wesley Matthews vs. Mike Cook

If the Golden Eagles succeed in limiting Gray's effectiveness, the Panthers will turn to Cook for offensive output. Cook ranks second on his team in scoring and assists but has been criticized for not being assertive enough. Matthews is more well-rounded, but Cook is more dangerous.

POWER FORWARD

Dan Fitzgerald vs. Levon Kendall

Fitzgerald's perimeter touch has been inconsistent of late, and while he brings versatility to the Golden Eagles' squad, Kendall fits perfectly on the Panthers as a complementary player. Kendall can rebound, defend and pass better than most; the Panthers just don't need him to score.

BENCH

Marquette offers David Cubillan as an outside-shooting guard off the bench. Pittsburgh's Ronald Ramon does everything Cubillan does, except more consistently. Lazar Hayward has his nights, and Dwight Burke has shown marked improvement, but Sam Young and Tyrell Biggs give the Panthers frontcourt athleticism and depth that the Golden Eagles cannot match.