Zellous, Stewart look for big things in Tournament

‘ ‘ ‘ When Shavonte Zellous came to Pitt five years ago, the Pitt women’s basketball team that… ‘ ‘ ‘ When Shavonte Zellous came to Pitt five years ago, the Pitt women’s basketball team that she joined was an entirely different program. During the 2003-04 season, when Pitt recruited Zellous and coach Agnus Berenato made her debut, the Panthers went 6-20 overall and 2-14 in the Big East. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Zellous was redshirted in the next season, and Pitt was 13-15, 5-11 in the Big East. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘When Coach B. came to my open gym in Florida, they said I could help rebuild this program,’ said Zellous. ‘Then I saw how many wins they had. I had to have blind faith.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The change in Pitt women’s basketball emerged as soon as seniors Zellous and Xenia Stewart stepped on the floor. During their freshman season, they helped lead Pitt to its first winning record (22-11, 9-7) since 1999-2000. As sophomores, the two led the Panthers to their first NCAA Tournament, which Pitt hosted. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ As juniors, they made it to the Sweet 16. And neither want to stop now. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘We’ve been to four straight postseasons,’ said Berenato. ‘We have another banner to add, and I think [Stewart and Zellous] really bought into the whole adage that we wanted to have a great program, Both have been starters for four straight years. They’ve helped to build the program. I just think the numbers speak for themselves.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Now, as the two lead their team to its third NCAA Tournament, neither knows what game will be their last with the team that they have so significantly helped to change. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘If it wasn’t for this team, [Stewart and I] wouldn’t be who we are,’ said Zellous. ‘I’m just going to give it my all, because with every possession it could be all over.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ She certainly gave it her all in the Big East tournament, despite losing to Louisville in the semifinals. Zellous was the only player named to the all-tournament team who didn’t play for a team in the final game. She scored 18 points against DePaul in the quarterfinals and 24 points in the semifinals. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Zellous was also named to the all-Big East first team for the third time and is the only Panther to do so. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ She and Stewart have the same goal going into the NCAA Tournament that the rest of their team, and maybe every other team, does: win a national title. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ That’s all either of them are looking at right now, and why shouldn’t they? The two helped mold the program for four years and took Pitt’s progress a step further at each season’s end. Last year, Pitt pushed all the way to the Sweet 16 before losing to No. 2-seeded Stanford. Zellous scored the team-high 22 points in the contest. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ So what are they doing differently to enter this NCAA Tournament? ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘We always play with a lot of fire and passion as a team,’ said Stewart. ‘This time we need more aggression. We’ll play anybody, as long as we get to that championship game.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Stewart reached 1,000 points in her career this season and averages 11.1 points per game. She is the only Panther averaging in the double digits besides Zellous, along with an average of four rebounds per game. She scored 14 against DePaul in her last Big East tournament. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Though Stewart knows as well as Zellous that every play could be her last in a Pitt jersey, she tries not to worry about that. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I’m not looking at [the NCAA Tournament] as my last one,’ said Stewart. ‘I’m just trying hard for my team. I’ll put myself second.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Both Zellous and Stewart plan to continue playing basketball after this season, either overseas or in the WNBA, but neither wants to worry about that until her time at Pitt ends and after trying for that national title. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘We’ve pushed the team really far in the past four years,’ said Zellous. ‘We want to take it even further for the University of Pittsburgh.’