Basketball: Women to take on Blue Devils Wednesday

Chelsea Cole scored 19 points and pulled down 10 rebounds as the Pitt women’s basketball team… Chelsea Cole scored 19 points and pulled down 10 rebounds as the Pitt women’s basketball team defeated Radford 77-46 on Monday.

A repeat performance from Cole would go a long way in helping the Panthers knock off No. 6 Duke when the Blue Devils travel to the Petersen Events Center tomorrow.

“I’m really welcoming to the challenge,” Pitt head coach Agnus Berenato said. “I think it’s exciting when you can go and play the best. Duke really has an opportunity to get in the Final Four and win the National Championship this year.”

Berenato hasn’t shied away from facing off against the top teams in women’s basketball during her years at Pitt. Last season, the Panthers played Florida. They took on Maryland and Texas A&M in 2008-09. Pitt scheduled Maryland and Duke in 2007-08 — all teams that have enjoyed plenty of recent successes.

This season, the Blue Devils are off to a quick start, defeating BYU, Southern California, Auburn and Western Kentucky by an average of 20 points. They return three starters from the team that finished 30-6 last season and advanced to the Elite Eight.

Jasmine Thomas leads Duke’s attack, averaging 14 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Karima Christmas also averages in double figures, with 12.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.

Thomas, a senior, is one of the top guards in the country and has started 60 consecutive games for the Blue Devils. A well-rounded guard, she’s only one of three players in Duke’s history to reach 1,000 points, 300 rebounds, 300 assists and 300 steals. She finished last season as an AP Third-Team All-America.

Along with Thomas, fellow senior Christmas was a Memphis Regional All-Tournament Team member in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Since hitting no 3-pointers as a freshman, Christmas has developed a three-point shot, draining 24-of-84 shots from beyond the arc last season.

Krystal Thomas and Haley Peters lead the Blue Devils in rebounding, grabbing 8.5 and nine boards a game, respectively.

Besides mentally preparing to face a top-10 team, Berenato said the Panthers will focus on readying themselves for Duke’s full-court press. She also expects the Blue Devils to play matchup zone and “to really be tenacious on the ball.”

“Their coach, Joanne P. McCallie, is known to be very ball-heavy and that helps on defense,” Berenato said.

Pitt split its first two games of the season, falling at Minnesota 73-63 in its season opener and then picking up the win against Radford at home.

Four Panthers are averaging double figures, with Brittaney Thomas leading with 17 points per game. Point guard Jania Sims follows with 15 points, and Taneisha Harrison adds 11 points per game.

Cole is averaging a double-double with 11.3 points and 11.5 rebounds. Cole led the conference in rebounding last season but has yet to reach her ceiling, according to Berenato.

“I think she needs to go ahead and up it,” Berenato said. “Not only lead in the nation, but she needs to try and have a double-double every game. We’ve asked her to increase her role.”

But it’s Sims, most often described as the leader of the team, who might be the most important player on the floor for Pitt. Against a high-quality team like Duke, solid play from the point guard will go a long way in helping Pitt pull off the upset.

“It always feels like things are more under control [when Sims is in the game],” Cole said. “She always tells everybody where they’re supposed to be so it’s more organized.”

The Panthers got off to a fast start against Radford, something they’d like to mimic against Duke on Wednesday. Pitt shot 72 percent in the first half, including 100 percent from three-point range, while putting up 41 points. Although the team cooled off in the second half, Berenato said that change stemmed from dropping the press.

“We opened up in the first half, we pressed, we threw a couple of different presses at them and it really got us going,” she said. “I took that off because you have to be better. You have to be in the half-court sets as well as the full court sets.”

The Panthers will attempt to find that offensive stability against the Blue Devils. It’s a game that many coaches would avoid this early in the season, but in the challenge, Berenato sees opportunity.

“I know that Duke is coming in here, and they’re ranked top five in the country, so it’s a fabulous opportunity for us to have a challenge like that and the opportunity to knock off a top-five team,” Berenato said.