Women’s basketball: No. 22 Panthers down Seton Hill in exhibition play

The Pitt women’s basketball team used a 17-0 first-half run to pull away from Seton Hill and… The Pitt women’s basketball team used a 17-0 first-half run to pull away from Seton Hill and eventually defeat the Griffins 91-60 last night. The exhibition game marked point guard Jania Sims’s first game since suffering a season-ending injury last season.

The junior scored 14 points and dished out eight assists for the Panthers in her return.

“I was really, really excited,” Sims said. “Coach [Agnus Berenato] told me to just calm down and play my game. It felt good to be back in the uniform and run up and down the court.”

Junior Shayla Scott said Sims’s return helps the rest of the Panthers to feel comfortable on the court because, although players stepped up to fill the position last season, Sims is a natural point guard.

“It makes you feel relaxed to be able to play with her, because if we’re flustered or need to take a deep breath, we can look at her and know that that’s her job and that’s her role,” Scott said.

The Panthers fell behind by as many as nine points in the first half before Scott ignited a flurry of Pitt scoring with a baseline jumper.

Kate Popovec followed with a lay-up and was fouled. Taneisha Harrison grabbed the rebound off the missed foul shot and scored to shrink the Seton Hill lead to 34-32.

Shortly after, Scott gave Pitt the lead for good with a 3-pointer and the Panthers eventually built a 47-37 lead that they took into the half.

Scott led all scorers with 20 points and collected eight rebounds.

“At the four-minute timeout, I said to the team, ‘We need to crack this open and go into the locker room leading by 10,’” Berenato said.

Seton Hill shot 60 percent from beyond the arc in the first half, with leading scorer Jordan Burkes and Katie Lintner each perfect from the 3-point line. Burkes finished the game with 17 points for the Griffins.

Berenato said the Panthers had had difficulty hitting the shots in the first half, but that she’s confident the team will make those shots in the future.

The Panthers started the second half as strongly as they ended the first: with a 24-5 run that sealed the victory.

Pitt improved its 3-point defense in the second half, limiting the Griffins to 1-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Seton Hill’s field goal percentage also dropped significantly by the end of the game, falling from close to 47 percent to 28 percent during the second half.

Pitt held a distinct advantage underneath the rim throughout the game, grabbing 48 rebounds — including 23 offensive — to Seton Hill’s 29. Popovec finished with 10 rebounds and nine points, and center Selenda Nwude grabbed nine rebounds and scored eight points.

The Panthers took advantage of 19 Seton Hill mishaps and scored 24 points off turnovers. Pitt allowed 10 turnovers, and Berenato said she was pleased with the Panthers’ ability to protect the ball throughout the game.

“In the second half, we showed that we could dominate,” she said. “All in all, it was the first game, and at least we know where we stand. We have a lot of work to do, and it makes it exciting to go back to practice.”

Berenato’s daughter, Clare Berenato — who plays for Seton Hill — scored the first basket of her college career during the game.

“I’m really, really proud of her,” Berenato said. “I’m a mom first. If they had not been playing us, I wouldn’t have gotten to see that. I can’t emphasize how proud I was.”