Cincinnati stumbles before big matchup against Pitt

Pitt's matchup against Cincinnati was supposed to be their second test against a top ten team. That likely won't be the case now as the Bearcats stumbled against New Mexico last week, losing by a point.

First things first - this wasn't a big upset. New Mexico is hardly a bad team and even though they're unranked, the Lobos are 13-1 on the year. They've also already beaten UConn and USC and their lone loss came against a 10-4 South Dakota State team. New Mexico is a team that should be ranked and certainly will after their win against Cincy.

The Panthers' game against the Bearcats on Monday is still a big one - that much is sure. But the Cincinnati loss does weaken the matchup just a bit. Instead of the chance to beat an undefeated top ten team, Pitt will now likely face a team ranked in the top 20 with a defeat already.

More to the point, you can also expect Cincinnati will probably be a bit hungrier. The team won't want to lose two games in a row and that could make it tougher for Pitt to come out with a victory.

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