Notre Dame (5-9, 2-6) vs. Pittsburgh (8-4, 4-3)
Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh; Saturday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Pittsburgh plays host to Notre Dame in an ACC matchup. Notre Dame fell short in a 62-51 game to Virginia Tech on Wednesday. Pittsburgh lost 75-65 to North Carolina on Tuesday.
BIG MEN ON CAMPUS: Justin Champagnie has put up a double-double (16.8 points and 10.2 rebounds) to lead the way for the Panthers. Xavier Johnson is also a key facilitator, putting up 13.8 points and 6.3 assists per game. The Fighting Irish are led by Nate Laszewski, who is averaging 15.9 points and eight rebounds.
DEFENSIVE IMPROVEMENTS: The Fighting Irish have allowed just 69.4 points per game to conference opponents thus far, an improvement from the 76.8 per game they gave up over six non-conference games.
CREATING OFFENSE: Prentiss Hubb has either made or assisted on 53 percent of all Notre Dame field goals over the last three games. Hubb has accounted for 20 field goals and 22 assists in those games.
SLIPPING AT 75: Notre Dame is 0-6 when it allows at least 75 points and 5-3 when it holds opponents to less than 75.
ASSIST-TO-FG RATIO: The Panthers have recently used assists to create buckets more often than the Fighting Irish. Pittsburgh has an assist on 54 of 74 field goals (73 percent) across its past three matchups while Notre Dame has assists on 48 of 79 field goals (60.8 percent) during its past three games.
FREQUENTLY FOULED: Pittsburgh has attempted the 25th-most free throws in the country at 23.2 per game. Notre Dame has gotten to the line far less frequently and is averaging only 16.1 foul shots per game (ranked 221st).
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