GAME NOTES: The Pittsburgh Panthers take aim at their third win in a row as they host the Manhattan Jaspers in non-conference action at the Peterson Events Center on Wednesday.

Coach Steve Masiello's Jaspers fell to 2-6 on Sunday with a 63-55 loss to Rutgers at Madison Square Garden. Manhattan is 0-4 in true road tests, including an 81-66 loss to the ACC's Florida State Seminoles in its season opener. The Jaspers have recorded just one win over an ACC program in school history and own a 1-8 record versus the 15-team league. Although it has the third worst record in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Manhattan ranks sixth in its league in scoring offense (61.9 ppg) and fourth in scoring defense (64.8 ppg). The Jaspers have forced 19 turnovers or more in five of its first eight games and rank 39th nationally with a +3.0 turnover margin.

To pick up its first road win of the 2014-15 campaign, Manhattan will have to overcome one of the toughest homecourt advantages in the country. The Panthers have compiled a 113-3 record during non-conference play at the Peterson Events Center since the building opened prior to the 2001-02 season.

Coach Jamie Dixon's Panthers used a strong start to the second half of their matchup on Saturday with St. Bonaventure to pick up a 58-54 decision over the Bonnies. Pitt is 6-3 overall and 3-0 at home, where it has won 27 consecutive games over non-conference foes.

The Panthers are 2-0 versus Manhattan, but these schools have not squared off sine Nov. 20, 1991. Pitt is 15-6 all-time against MAAC opponents.

Senior Emmy Andujar led the way for the Jaspers in the Big Apple, tallying 21 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals while going 7-for-11 from the floor over 39 minutes against the Scarlet Knights. Junior forward Ashton Pankey posted 10 points and six boards in the setback. Over the last three games, Andujar and Pankey have accounted for over half of Manhattan's scoring (51.5 percent) along with 55.1 percent of the team's rebounds. The rest of the Jaspers have combined to shoot just 29.5 percent from the floor, including an 8-of-40 clip from beyond the arc during that span. Manhattan could receive a boost from 6-foot-10 sophomore Jermaine Lawrence, who has netted 16 points and grabbed five rebounds in three games since making his program debut on Dec. 5. Lawrence played his freshman season at Cincinnati after coming into the collegiate ranks as one of the top rated prospects in his high school class.

The Panthers set a season-low with 58 points in their triumph over SBU on Saturday despite coming out on top. Pitt received a huge boost from its trio of sophomore starters, Michael Young, Jamel Artis and Chris Jones. Young recorded his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 17 rebounds. Artis also finished with 14 points to go along with four blocks, while Jones swatted three shots and netted 11 points. Senior guard Cameron Wright, who played a key role for the Panthers' 26-win squad in 2013-14, made his second appearance and first start of the season versus the Bonnies. He scored only one point after missing all four of his field goal tries and going 1-of-2 at the charity stripe over 21 minutes of action.

Once Wright gets back to 100 percent, he will be a huge difference maker for the Panthers. The fourth-year guard has four games at the PEC to shake off the rust before ACC play begins. Wright posted averages of 10.5 points, 2.6 assists and 1.8 steals per outing last season.