USF (14-4, 4-1) at No. 25 Pittsburgh (14-3, 2-2)

When: Sun., 2 p.m.Where: Petersen Events CenterTV/Radio: None, 860 AM

Coach Jose Fernandez gave his team a little reminder of the Bulls’ two losses to Pittsburgh last season.

During USF’s practice session Thursday, he passed out laminated cards that read: ’66-64′ and ’60-58,’ the scores from the two games the Bulls dropped against the Panthers a season ago.

Mallorie Winn won both games with jumpers at the buzzer for the Panthers.The message on the cards struck a chord with the team.

“It’s just a reminder of what happened last year and to make sure we don’t make the same mistakes again,” guard Rachel Sheats said. “We’re not going to let that happen again because we remember how it felt.”

The Panthers finished the regular season with an 18-9 record, but failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament while USF earned their first-ever tournament berth with a record of 19-11. Each team went 9-7 in Big East play.

“They also were deserving of an NCAA Tournament,” Fernandez said. “Pittsburgh is a very good basketball team.”

This season, the Bulls are looking to defeat the only team they fell to twice last season.

“I’m definitely taking it personally,” guard Tristen Webb said. “(Pittsburgh) had some words to say after not reaching the tournament. We want to show them their place.”

The Panthers are ranked No. 25 in the ESPN/USA Today poll but managed only 10 votes in the latest Associated Press poll. USF is coming off its biggest victory of the season after defeating No. 15 Louisville 74-58. The Bulls received 17 votes in the ESPN/USA Today poll and 12 in the AP poll. A win Saturday may catapult the team into the Top 25 in both rankings for the first time in the program’s 35-year history.

Fernandez maintains he isn’t getting caught up in the hype.

“That kind of stuff is insignificant right now,” Fernandez said. “We just need to keep winning games, try and make the Big East Tournament and then (reach) another NCAA Tournament.”

After Pittsburgh began the season with 13 straight wins, but has stumbled of late, losing three of their last five contests, including two against conference foes. The Panthers are led by Shavonte Zellous, the conference’s third-leading scorer with 19.7 points per game.

Bulls forward Nalini Miller has grabbed 30 rebounds in the last two games and leads the team with an average of 8.5. Miller will be relied upon to keep Marcedes Walker – Pittsburgh’s leading rebounder – off the glass.

Keep an eye on: Bulls point guard Shantia Grace. The sophomore recorded her first double-double of the season after tallying 20 points and a season-high 11 assists against Louisville. Grace’s 16.5 points per game ranks her seventh in the conference in scoring average.