Zellous gives Berenato 100th win, Brawl victory

Pitt women’s basketball coach Agnus Berenato saw her 100th win at Pitt and a Backyard Brawl… Pitt women’s basketball coach Agnus Berenato saw her 100th win at Pitt and a Backyard Brawl victory at the same time on Sunday, as the Panthers opened up Big East play at home with a 72-63 win over rival West Virginia (10-3, 0-1 Big East). The win was the closest for the No. 19 Panthers (11-2, 1-0), who were averaging wins by 36.7 points. ‘It’s 100 wins for Pittsburgh,’ said Berenato. ‘Six years ago when we came, we didn’t have 100 people here, literally. Needless to say, we didn’t have a great team, but we believed in each other and in this University.’ The story of the game for Pitt was senior guard Shavonte Zellous. But that didn’t come until the second half. West Virginia and senior guard Takisha Granberry started off the game’s scoring, driving the score to 6-0 in the first two minutes. Pitt got the game started with a rebound from freshman Pepper Wilson and the team’s initial points from senior Xenia Stewart, bringing the score to 6-3. After a foul on West Virginia’s Cynthia Fullard, Wilson went 2-of-2 at the line, tying the game at 8. The teams continued to trade baskets, and the game stayed close for the remainder of the first half until Shayla Scott stole the ball and scored late in the half, giving Pitt a 33-27 lead ‘mdash; its biggest of the game. West Virginia fought back, but Pitt led 34-31 at halftime. The Mountaineers started the scoring in the second half as well, regaining a 35-34 lead before Zellous shot a jumper and a three to help Pitt back to a 44-42 lead. West Virginia hung on, despite five traveling calls and two more 3-pointers from Zellous, keeping the score at a close 47-45. The Mountaineers’ Granberry then tied the game at 47 before Pitt went on a nine-point run that included 3-pointers from Stewart and Taneisha Harrison. Granberry ended the Panthers’ streak with a shot from behind the arc, bringing the score to 57-50. West Virginia closed the gap to 64-63 at one point, but Pitt never gave up its lead. ‘It felt like desperation,’ said Granberry. ‘We just broke down. [Zellous] is an unbelievable player. She just went off on us.’ Zellous ended with 34 points, 28 of which came in the second half. She added four assists and five rebounds to lead her team. ‘The second half is always my half,’ said Zellous. ‘I kind of let my team down in the first half, so coming out of halftime I knew I had to pick up my game.’ Free throws proved to be another deciding factor in the game, as Pitt went 22-of-28 from the line, while West Virginia shot 6-of-9. Pitt will return to the court Wednesday when it travels to Providence for a 7 p.m. tipoff.