Women’s Basketball: Panthers set to face Syracuse

The Pitt women’s basketball team expects a battle in the frontcourt against Syracuse on… The Pitt women’s basketball team expects a battle in the frontcourt against Syracuse on Saturday as both teams look to earn their first win in Big East play.

Syracuse (11-5, 0-2 Big East) leads the Big East in rebounds with 50.6 rebounds per game and in rebounding margin, grabbing 13.9 more boards than its opponents.

Pitt senior center Leeza Burdgess said she relishes the opportunity to test herself against Syracuse’s frontcourt.

“It’s always a challenge,” Burdgess said. “And it’s always fun playing good post competition and just helping me getting better at my game, my defense and seeing where I am.”

Pitt head coach Agnus Berenato knows Syracuse will come ready to battle at the Petersen Events Center at 2 p.m. Pitt lost on Tuesday at Villanova 70-62, while the Orange are coming off a 55-44 loss to No. 10 Rutgers.

“Last year, we had a battle up there at their place, and we’re definitely looking to have a battle here,” Berenato said. “[Syracuse] knows that they’re 0-2, and we know we’re 0-2. Someone’s going to get a win. Someone is going to get in the win column.”

Syracuse’s strong inside presence will challenge the Panthers (8-7, 0-2 Big East), who are sixth in the 16-team Big East in rebounding with 41.3 boards per game and 12th in rebounding margin, pulling down just 0.8 more boards than its opponents.

The Orange’s frontcourt duo of Iasia Hemingway and Kayla Alexander, who average 15.6 and 15.4 points and 6.9 and 7.8 rebounds, respectively, will keep Pitt’s interior players busy.

Pitt freshman guard Brianna Kiesel said the high level of Syracuse’s interior play shouldn’t be disastrous for the Panthers (8-7, 0-2 Big East).

“Just because they’re strong in the post doesn’t mean that our post layers can’t dish out just as much,” Kiesel said.

Syracuse also has weapons on the outside. Guard Carmen Tyson-Thomas averages 12.4 points and 8.4 rebounds. She’s coming off a 14-point performance against Rutgers.

Berenato said teams often possess the ability to attack from anywhere on the floor in the Big East and that she expects chaos in the paint whenever a shot goes up.

“They will go over your back,” Berenato said. “As soon as they take a shot there will be five people clamoring [for the ball] … [All five Syracuse players] will be in the middle of the paint. Sometimes they go over each other’s backs. It’s unbelievable.”

Last year, Pitt lost to the Orange 69-60.

Kiesel has been Pitt’s standout player of late, averaging a team-high 14.6 points, including a career-high 26-point performance against Villanova.

The freshman from Utica, N.Y., said growing up near Syracuse doesn’t give her any extra incentive to win, but she added that the team as a whole is motivated.

“We’re all really hungry,” she said.

Sophomore Marquel Davis is the only other Pitt player averaging double figures with 11.1 points per game and said she wants to see her team challenge Syracuse.

“We just want them to go out and compete,” Berenato said. “They really need to compete. We still have problems in the beginning of the game. That’s where we’re getting down.”

Burdgess stressed the need for Pitt to control the glass.

“We can’t allow them to get those second-chance opportunities because the rebounds and their scoring in the paint is [what they rely on],” Burdgess said. “We have to take that away and see if they can find another way to score without giving them the second chances.”

The team knows what it needs to do to get a win on Saturday.

“We’re going to fight for everything,” Burdgess said.