Zellous helps Pitt bounce back, handle Wildcats

Pitt senior guard Shavonte Zellous is the nation’s third leading scorer for good reason. During… Pitt senior guard Shavonte Zellous is the nation’s third leading scorer for good reason. During Pitt’s matchup against Villanova Wednesday night, she proved why. Zellous, who was recently named the Dapper Dan Sportswoman of the Year, scored 23 points and added 10 rebounds, helping propel No. 19 Pitt past Villanova 70-54 at the Petersen Events Center. Zellous scored the first nine points for the Panthers. By halftime, she single-handedly scored nearly as many points as Villanova. Zellous started the game hot, but Pitt (19-5, 9-3) as a team started off slow, as the Wildcats (17-9, 9-3) led for much of the first half. It wasn’t until Kate Popovec scored nine minutes into the game that any member of the team other than Zellous showed signs of life. At that point, Pitt started working its bench players. In the end, those players helped Pitt get back on its feet, with Popovec and Chelsea Cole as main contributors. Pitt saw its first lead of the game after a layup from Cole brought the score to 13-12. Cole scored again several minutes later on a free throw that gave Pitt a 20-16 lead ‘mdash; its biggest lead of the game at the time. It also gave the team the go-ahead to run away with the game, and Pitt led the rest of the game. With the win, Pitt jumped to No. 3 in the Big East standings ‘mdash; a spot that the Wildcats previously held. ‘Tonight’s win was really great,’ said Pitt coach Agnus Berenato. ‘We were in fourth place in the Big East, and we wanted what they had. Now, the tides are turned.’ At halftime, Zellous had 17 points, and Pitt led 34-24. The second half saw a much different game. Villanova’s Laura Kurz started the half on a scoring rampage, after having already scored 14 points in the first half. She stepped on the floor and immediately scored five. Followed by points from Lisa Karcic, Maria Gerry and Kurz, Villanova quickly came within one at 37-36. Still, as close as they got, the Wildcats never led. ‘We just have a tough time sustaining offense,’ said Villanova coach Harry Perretta. Kurz continued to dominate for most of the second half, while Zellous remained quiet. But Pitt held on to the lead with the majority of the team’s points coming from Xenia Stewart, who scored seven early in the half and finished with 11 in the game. Despite Kurz’s strong showing ‘mdash; she scored a career-high 35 in the contest ‘mdash; Pitt used a strong defense to limit Villanova to only two 3-pointers in the game. Kurz was virtually the only offensive force on the Wildcats’ team, as their second-leading scorer put up seven in the game. Popovec followed Zellous in scoring with 12 points and nine rebounds. The Panthers will resume play on Saturday at 2 p.m. to take on Cincinnati.