Hot Hand lifts Oklahoma past Pitt

OKLAHOMA CITY ‘- The scene at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City on Sunday night was anything… OKLAHOMA CITY ‘- The scene at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City on Sunday night was anything but favorable for a player, coach or fan of the blue and gold.

Between the roaring crowd of 10,343, an overbearing sea of red surrounding the 20-some Pitt fans and the barely audible cries of ‘Let’s Go Pitt,’ it was beyond overwhelming to be a Panther.

The Panthers, once behind by as much as 27, found some late offense, went on a 12-0 run in the final minutes, and didn’t allow Oklahoma to score in the last six minutes. But it was too late. The Sooners advanced to the Elite Eight, beating Pitt 70-59.

Despite circumstances working against them, Pitt started hot.

It took an early 2-0 lead and even though Oklahoma had a response for everything Pitt put up ‘- Courtney Paris quickly evened the score ‘- the Panthers looked good offensively and defensively next to the strongly-favored Sooners.

Oklahoma freshman Whitney Hand found the spot she’d be frequenting just beyond the arc and put up a 3-pointer, giving the Sooners a 9-6 advantage.

Ashley Paris followed the shot with two of her own, giving Oklahoma the five-point lead. Shawnice ‘Pepper’ Wilson found herself under the basket and put up two, bring the score to 11-8, but with Hand outside the arc, Oklahoma’s margin widened once again.

Hand scored 22 in the game — 14 in the first half alone — and brought down eight rebounds. Her best game prior to last night was also played at the Ford Center.

‘I think it’s just the environment and I was lucky enough to hit a few at the beginning,’ said Hand. ‘I think I had a good game tonight, but shout out to everyone else. I’m really glad I had a good game, but I’m so much happier that we’re in the Elite Eight and still alive.’

With the combined efforts of Zellous, Taneisha Harrison and Xenia Stewart, Pitt and Oklahoma found themselves tied once again, this time at 16, before Oklahoma started to run away.

The difference in the matchup was offense. Pitt’s shots just didn’t fall, and it seemed like Oklahoma couldn’t miss. In the first half, Pitt made only 31 percent of its field goals and only went 3-of-13 from behind the arc.

Zellous halted an Oklahoma run, converting on a long jumper, but Pitt couldn’t get any intensity to match that of the Sooners, no doubt encouraged by the overwhelming home crowd.

The teams went to halftime with a score at 41-32 in favor of Oklahoma.

The ball wasn’t sinking any easier for Pitt after a break.

Oklahoma’s Nyesha Stevenson hit an early 3-pointer, which Zellous followed up with one of her own, her first from long distance of the game.

Stevenson hit another 3-pointer just as the shot clock ran out, and the Panthers’ offense came to a virtual halt from there.

‘In our eyes it was a big play,’ said Zellous. ‘I think it was one second on the clock and that got the crowd into it. We just had a defensive letdown. It was a big play for them.’

With a score of 47-35, the Sooners went on a 17-2 scoring rampage, and the game was all but lost.

Zellous found some offense with 10 minutes in the half, scoring two for the team, and giving Pitt a boost in score, 64-39.

Although Elite Eight status was all but theirs, Zellous was encouraging even after she left the game with two minutes to go. She scored 18 in her final game for Pitt, 12 in the second half, and brought down nine rebounds in 35 minutes of play.

Oklahoma will face Purdue on Tuesday.