Pitt vs. Chaminade: Open Gamethread

Pitt basketball tries to get back to basics tonight after getting surprised by Hawaii last weekend. If you go back to the narrow seven-point win against Samford last week, the Panthers have now underwhelmed in two consecutive games.

Tonight's game against host Chaminade officially kicks off the Maui Invitational for the Panthers. They hope to face teams like San Diego State and Arizona, but first they've got to knock off Chaminade. Easier said than done after the Hawaii debacle, huh?

The winner will get the winner of San Diego State/BYU on Tuesday while the loser heads into the losers bracket in a mad scramble for fifth place. Woof. Teams like Missouri, BYU, and Purdue could wind up in the losers bracket if they don't pull off upsets tonight, but fifth place obviously isn't the goal here.

It goes without saying that this is a pretty important game. A loss here and the quality of future opponents probably drops considerably. Beyond that, if the Panthers somehow lose tonight, it throws this season into all out panic mode - four games in, no less.

Game time tonight is at 9:00 p.m. and unlike the Hawaii game, it will actually be on TV, courtesy of ESPNU. Leave your pregame thoughts below then check back at 9:00 p.m. to comment live during the game.