Women’s basketball: Panthers will host St. John’s, honor lone senior on Monday night

The Pitt women’s basketball team will play its last game of the regular season when the… The Pitt women’s basketball team will play its last game of the regular season when the Panthers host No. 18 St. John’s (23-5, 11-4 Big East) on Monday night. Pitt (16-12, 5-10) is coming off a 72-60 victory over Cincinnati on Saturday and the Panthers will look to end the season on a two-game winning streak when they tip off with the Red Storm at 7 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center. The game marks the last home game for the lone senior on Pitt’s roster, Sophronia Sallard. Sallard played in 12 games and started two so far this season. She averages 6.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game for the Panthers. A versatile player who can be used as a guard or a forward, Sallard transferred to Pitt after spending her freshman year at Kansas, where she played in 15 games and averaged 1.8 points in 8.5 minutes per game. During her redshirt sophomore and junior seasons, Sallard played in 65 combined games, including all 33 during her junior year. She scored a career-high 20 points in Pitt’s overtime victory over Rutgers last season. The Panthers won four out of their last five games and, despite falling to DePaul 68-57 on Feb. 23, may have found their way as of late. Particularly in their last two wins, the Panthers limited their turnovers: an issue they struggled with for the majority of the season. Against the Bearcats, Pitt turned the ball over 11 times and allowed 16 points off the mistakes. On their win over Seton Hall on Feb. 20, the Panthers turned the ball over 14 times, allowing only 13 points off the miscues, including just five in the second half. In contrast, when the Panthers fell to DePaul, they turned the ball over 20 times and the Blue Demons took advantage of the mistakes to the tune of 19 points. A constant for Pitt throughout the last three is the play of forward Chelsea Cole. Cole scored 10 points and grabbed a career-high 22 rebounds against Seton Hall and followed that game with a 12-point, 18-rebound performance against DePaul. Against Cincinnati, Cole led all scorers with 20 points and grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds, including six offensive boards. Four other Panthers reached double figures against the Bearcats, a statistic that head coach Agnus Berenato pointed to throughout the season as the reason for her team’s success. Brittaney Thomas and Jania Sims each scored 15 points, while Taneisha Harrison added 10 points. Shayla Scott was a basket away from double digits, scoring eight points for the Panthers. She also grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out six assists. Pitt tallied 18 total assists in the game, which left them one short of their game-high total in Big East play. The Panthers will look to carry over their positive statistics when they take on St. John’s. The Red Storm, who are having their best season in 26 years, are led by Da’Shena Stevens and Shenneika Smith. Stevens, a 6-foot-1 sophomore forward, paces the Red Storm with 13.8 points per game. She’s also second on the team in rebounding, grabbing 7.5 boards a game. Senior Joy McCorvey leads St. John’s with 7.7 rebounds a game. Stevens was the Big East Freshman of the Year last season and was the only unanimous Big East all-freshmen team selection. She scored 406 points for the Red Storm last season — a St. John’s record for a rookie — while averaging 11.9 points per game. Smith, a 6-foot-1 freshman guard, is the only other Red Storm player to average double figures with 12.4 points per game. St. John’s earned its 23rd victory in a 69-42 route of Villanova on senior night. The win gave the Red Storm their most victories since the 1983-84 season. Stevens led all players with 22 points in the win, while McCorvey put together a double-double on her senior night with 12 points and 10 rebounds.