Boston, MA -- (Sports Network) - Big East Conference rivals square off tonight in the NCAA Tournament's East Regional final, as the top-seeded Pittsburgh Panthers battle the third-seeded Villanova Wildcats with a berth in the Final Four on the line.

Villanova led second-seeded Duke by three points at intermission in Thursday's Sweet 16 game, but the Wildcats dominated the second half and pulled away for a staggering 77-54 victory. There is no doubt that Jay Wright's club is playing with a wealth of confidence, as it cruised past UCLA in the second round in an 89-69 final. Villanova is making its fifth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament and owns a 47-29 record in this event. The Wildcats, who are 29-7 overall, won their only national title back in 1985 and have more wins as an underdog seed (13) in the NCAA Tournament than any other program. Still, it is hard to consider the squad an underdog tonight considering its play over the last two games against what were thought to be high-quality opponents.

As for Pittsburgh, it trailed Xavier by eight points at the break on Thursday before rallying for a 60-55 victory, earning the program its first Elite Eight berth since 1974. Victories over East Tennessee State and Oklahoma State in the first two rounds were close as well, but while the Panthers haven't been dominant, they have certainly made plays at both ends of the court in crunch time. The club is now 21-21 in what is its 21st appearance in the "Big Dance" and holds a top seed for the first time in program history. Pitt set a school- record with 15 Big East regular season wins and finished a perfect 19-0 at home. The senior class has already established a program-high mark for victories over a four-year span, as that record currently stands at 112. The Panthers are making a school-record eighth straight NCAA Tournament appearance, one of eight squads nationally that have done so over the last eight years.

Villanova beat Pittsburgh, 67-57, in the only meeting between the two teams this season, and the Wildcats own a 30-27 lead in the all-time series.

The 29 wins posted by Villanova this season marks a program record, and Jay Wright is attempting to take his 'Cats to the Final Four for the first time since he's been at the helm. A balanced offensive attack and tremendous defense enabled Wright's club to beat Duke for the first time in more than 50 years. Dante Cunningham was rock solid as usual, as he posted 14 points and 11 rebounds. Scottie Reynolds didn't shoot the ball particularly well, but he still finished with 16 points for 'Nova. As for Reggie Redding, he contributed 11 points and nine rebounds. The Wildcats earned a 49-34 rebounding advantage in the clash and limited the Blue Devils to 26.7 percent shooting from the field. Cunningham is averaging 16.3 ppg and 7.4 rpg while shooting 52.8 percent from the floor. Reynolds checks in with 15.2 ppg and 3.4 apg, while Corey Fisher provides 10.8 ppg. The Wildcats are generating 77.0 ppg this season while limiting foes to 66.7 ppg on 40.1 percent field goal efficiency.

Pittsburgh point guard Levance Fields is one of the nation's elite passers, but it was his three-pointer with 50.9 seconds remaining against Xavier on Thursday that gave the Panthers a late lead. Fields then stole the ball and scored again, and it was those two plays that enabled coach Jamie Dixon's team to advance. Fields finished the game with 14 points and six assists, and he got plenty of help as usual from the other two members of the "big three". Sam Young tallied 19 points, while DeJuan Blair finished with 10 points and 17 rebounds. The fact that the Panthers only shot 33.8 percent from the field, including 4-of-15 from three-point range, is surprising. Fortunately, they were able to limit the Musketeers to 32.8 percent field goal efficiency. A low total of nine turnovers also helped the cause. Young is averaging 18.9 ppg and 6.2 rpg, while Blair provides 15.6 ppg and 12.4 rpg. As for Fields, he is scoring 10.7 ppg and has dished out 264 assists against only 71 turnovers. Pitt is scoring 77.9 ppg while allowing only 65.1 ppg, and it is hard to find a team nationally with a better trio of players.