For Pitt in the new century (Insider Subs.), at least.

The easy choice for Pitt coach Jamie Dixon was to take Florida International — a likely win — as a replacement opponent in the Aeropostale Classic New York and call the schedule official.

But Dixon is well aware that he has a Final Four-caliber team capable of playing anyone, anytime, so when South Carolina abruptly pulled out of the Dec. 21 event, leaving the Panthers scrambling for a nonconference game, Dixon didn’t waste time.

He waited about two days as Alabama, Virginia Tech and Mississippi State attempted to move games around to play the Panthers in New York as the undercard to Duke-Gonzaga in Madison Square Garden. Dixon was given a 6 p.m. deadline by the promoter on Friday. Florida International was a possible replacement — and with the Blue Devils-Zags main attraction, no one was too concerned over Pitt’s opponent. The money for the undercard was minimal (a contentious point for the Gamecocks), with the gate expected to be dominated by the Blue Devils and Bulldogs.

Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury actually worked it so he could move a game against the University of New Orleans in Jackson, Miss., but just when Stansbury had the deal worked out, he got word that the Panthers were out of the event.

Where will Pitt go instead? Oklahoma City.

Barring some sort of contractual hangup, Pitt, according to Dixon, will play against Oklahoma State in the All-College Tournament, an event Dixon was once the MVP of when he played at TCU, on Dec. 21. Oklahoma is scheduled to play Tulsa as part of the doubleheader at the Ford Center.

Ostensibly a “neutral court,” this is clearly a road game challenge for Pitt. That means Pitt will play on the road in Oklahoma City, at Auburn and at Wisconsin. In addition there are home games against Washington, FSU, Dayton, UMass, and a neutral court game against Western Michigan. Then there will be home games against Duquesne, Robert Morris and only a couple patsies. Season ticket holders will get their money’s worth this year.

And in Andy Katz’s preview of the top-50 Pitt comes in at #4.

What we like: We’ve heard from quite a few that this is too high for the Panthers. Well, they did get back a monster in the middle in Aaron Gray. He should be immovable at times in the post. The big secret, though, is in the rest of this squad. Big East coaches love Levon Kendall and Sam Young, two players that don’t get a ton of rep.

What concerns us: The heat will be on the perimeter to replace Carl Krauser‘s toughness and moxie. That means Ronald Ramon must be more verbal to ensure the Panthers meet these expectations.

Power-rating push: Coach Jamie Dixon didn’t shy away from big-time games this season, with a trip to Wisconsin, a game with Washington and potential pests UMass and Florida State on the slate.

As for the rest of the Big East and Pitt opponents:

Georgetown, #7

Wisconsin, #8

UConn, #14

Washington, #19

Marquette, #20

Syracuse, #21

Villanova, #23

Oklahoma St., #26

Louisville, #30

DePaul, #37

Florida St., #40

I don’t know off the top of my head if Pitt has played this challenging a non-con in the 20+ years it has been in the Big East.