Women’s Basketball: Panthers can’t end Huskies win streak

The No. 1 Connecticut Huskies (21-0, 8-0 Big East) used a 14-2 first half run to put away the… The No. 1 Connecticut Huskies (21-0, 8-0 Big East) used a 14-2 first half run to put away the Pitt women’s basketball team Saturday afternoon, eventually defeating the Panthers 98-56.

After the Huskies burst out of the gate on a 15-4 run, Pitt (12-8, 1-6 Big East) pulled within eight with 13 minutes remaining before the break.

That’s when Connecticut took over and transformed the 21-13 score into a comfortable 20-point lead. Connecticut’s Maya Moore led the run with six points, including a 3-pointer that increased the lead to 18.

Pitt never climbed within single digits again and the Huskies took a 57-32 lead into the break.

In comparison, Providence scored 58 points against the Panthers in the entire game in Pitt’s first Big East victory on Jan 23.

“I think Connecticut is number one for a reason,” Pitt coach Agnus Berenato said. “I think they are a beautiful team to watch. In the first half, they shot 63 percent and I would’ve thought they shot 100 percent.

“We were really fired up to play defense, but to me they looked like wide open shots. That’s just because they are so fluid.”

Despite being out-scored 41-24 in the second half, the Panthers defense slightly stifled Connecticut, holding the Huskies to 44 percent shooting after the break.

“In the second half, it was a 17 point scoring difference and in the first half it was 25,” Berenato said. “So we got better.”

The Panthers shot 38 percent for the game, which Berenato hopes will bring her team a dose of confidence after their recent shooting struggles.

Pitt shot 29 percent in its victory over Providence.

Connecticut’s Tina Charles went 10-for-13 from the field and 4-for-4 from the foul line as she led all scorers with 24 points. She also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.

In leading the Huskies, Charles reached 2,000 points for her career. She entered the game needing 17 points to reach the mark.

Moore and Kalana Greene added 22 and 16 points, respectively.

The Huskies stretched their win streak to 60 games, the second-longest winning streak in NCAA Women’s Basketball Division 1 history, following only their own 70-game win streak from 2001-03.

“The thing that impresses me the most about [Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma’s] team is not his shooting percentage,” Berenato said. “It’s his great chemistry. It’s his bench. The thing I admire most is how hard they play. There will be a day when they shoot like normal women, but they play so hard but their resiliency will allow them to win.”

Despite his team’s dominance, Auriemma said there are always issues that come up in practice that his team needs to work on. Connecticut performed well on offensive against the Panthers, Auriemma said, but he wasn’t pleased with his team’s defense.

“There is no streak talk and no numbers talk,” Auriemma said. “We don’t sit around and say here’s where we’re at. They know what the goal is and they know what the final destination is.”

Greene said the Huskies entered the game wanting to put an emphasis on rebounding.

“We did great,” Greene said. “They weren’t able to get second shots and we were able to get the ball out in transition.”

Connecticut out-rebounded the Panthers 43-26, including 16-10 on the offensive boards.

Shayla Scott paced Pitt with 18 points, while Jania Sims scored 11 and dished out three assists.

Despite the loss, Sims said the Panthers were able to learn from the game.

“Everybody was running the floor,” Sims said. “Everybody was trying to attack the basket, be aggressive and look for their shot. I think this is a game we can build on and go into Syracuse with the same mentality we came into Connecticut.”

Berenato said she hopes the Panthers can learn and build upon the loss to the Huskies.

“We learned a lot about our team,” Berenato said. “We played hard and we thought we could really compete with Connecticut. We’ll learn from it. What we’ve done all week is prepare for the rest of the season.”

The Panthers have nine games remaining on their schedule, first taking on Syracuse at home on Feb. 2. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.