Women’s basketball: Panthers try to avoid another historic loss

The last time the women’s basketball team played a top 10 opponent, it lost by a historic 76… The last time the women’s basketball team played a top 10 opponent, it lost by a historic 76 points to Notre Dame.

This time, the Panthers hope to avoid a repeat when they face No. 4 University of Connecticut Tuesday night.

If the team’s losing streak, currently at 12, continues, it will be the worst streak under Agnus Berenato during her nine seasons at Pitt.

UConn (24-3 overall, 11-2 Big East), a perennial power in women’s college basketball, made some history of its own recently. When the Huskies lost 57-56 to St. John’s on Saturday, the longest home winning streak in women’s NCAA history ended at 99 games. It was also the first time UConn had lost to an unranked opponent in 19 years.

The Panthers (8-18 overall, 0-13 Big East), who are coming off a 62-50 loss at the hands of South Florida, seemed to have lost the inside-outside offensive balance that played a crucial role in creating close games against Cincinnati and Louisville.

Leeza Burdgess led Pitt post players with nine points against South Florida, but forwards Kyra Dunn and TiAnna Porter had only four and three, respectively.

Pitt needs that balance to have a chance on Tuesday.

“We have to get more points from our four position,” Berenato said.

With the posts struggling offensively, the guards need to pick up the slack.

“Collectively, our guards have to score more. Our guards only shot 30 percent [against South Florida],” Berenato said. “You got to do better than that.”

The game has the potential to turn ugly quickly as it pits the league’s worst defense against the best defense and second-best offense.

And considering that UConn is already coming off of a shock defeat, another upset bid appears unlikely.

“UConn is gooing to come out trying to get a win and not underestimate anybody,” Burdgess said.

That said, the Huskies’ loss to St. Johns did humanize the seemingly indefatigable juggernaut.

Burgess said it made the team believe that it can compete.

UConn players freshman Kiah Stokes and sophomore Stefanie Dolson were dumbfounded by the loss.

“It’s hard to get that through my head that we actually just lost,” Stokes said in a press release on UConn’s website.

“It was like we didn’t even care,” Dolson added.

The chances that the Huskies will be as dazed and confused against Pitt are slim, said senior Tiffany Charles, because the loss will only improve the team.

“We need to focus,” Charles said in a press release on UConn’s website. “Coach said a loss is probably good for us because we were making mistakes in other games . . . I think it will make us focus even more.”

The Panthers average nearly 20 turnovers a game — a stat that has no reason to be so high, Berenato said.

“We have to cut down on the turnovers. They don’t need to happen,” she said.

Berenato was quick to dispel any notion of Pitt sneaking up and surprising UConn.

“I don’t that Connecticut ever goes into a game thinking that they have it in hand. They are elite competitors, and competitors do not ever look past an opponent,” she said.

Burdgess agreed.

“UConn is not the team that is going to go on a losing spree,” she said. “UConn is gonna come out trying to get a win and not underestimate anybody.”

Redshirt sophomore Ashlee Anderson could be the catalyst for Pitt’s offensive success, as long as she stays combative.

“I definitely have gotten more aggressive . . .  I’m becoming more confident with my offense so that’s helping me defensively,” Anderson said.

In order for the team to have a chance at competing, offensive production needs to be high.

“[Against South Florida] we made the turnovers, but we made sure the next possession we got a stop, or the next possession we got a score,” Anderson said. “We can’t turn the ball over without scoring or getting a defensive stop.”

Burdgess says the interior players have to rebound on the offensive end to give the Panthers a chance.

“We have to get every offensive rebound to get us more chances,” she said. “We still struggle with turning over the ball, so in order to lengthen our possessions, we just need to get [those] rebounds.”

Asked about the rest of the season, Berenato’s attention was concentrated on the short term.

“I’m focusing on getting the ball inbounds,” she said.

Even though the opponent is so highly regarded, Pitt’s approach to this game is the same as it’s been for all of conference play.

“We’re coming out ready to play a very competitive game and trying to get our first Big East win,” Burdgess said.