Popovec stands out for women

‘ ‘ ‘ As the Pitt women’s basketball team traveled down Forbes Avenue last night to take on… ‘ ‘ ‘ As the Pitt women’s basketball team traveled down Forbes Avenue last night to take on Duquesne, it was looking to continue its recent dominance over the Dukes and win the fourth straight meeting between the city rivals. ‘ ‘ ‘ It took awhile, but the Panthers used a strong second half to pull away from the Dukes and win, 66-47. ‘ ‘ ‘ No. 24 Pitt struggled in the first half, leading just 27-23 at halftime. It didn’t help that star guard Shavonte Zellous left the game with an ankle injury for several minutes. ‘ ‘ ‘ But Pitt woke up in the second half, picking up its intensity on the defensive side of the ball and running its offensive sets efficiently. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘In the second half, we turned up the defensive pressure. We pressed and disrupted [Duquesne],’ said Pitt coach Agnus Berenato. ‘The thing the team wants to be known for is great defense.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Pitt also went inside more frequently in the second half, using its significant size advantage to overpower the Dukes. ‘ ‘ ‘ As a result, the Panthers dominated down low. Freshman center Kate Popovec finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds off the bench, and fellow rookie Shawnice ‘Pepper’ Wilson added eight points and five rebounds. ‘ ‘ ‘ Duquesne coach Suzie McConnell-Serio said she thought that Pitt wore her team down. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘You have to expend more energy with [Pitt’s] size advantage,’ said McConnell-Serio. ‘Over the course of the game they were just too dominant inside.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Popovec had her way in the paint in the second half, scoring 13 points and grabbing seven rebounds. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘With every game I am getting more experienced and more confident,’ said Popovec, who was 7-of-7 from the field. ‘ ‘ ‘ Junior guard Keri Pryor led Duquesne with 18 points in the losing effort. She reiterated her coach’s comments that Pitt proved to be too much down low. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Second chances killed us,’ said Pryor. ‘All the offensive rebounds they kept getting were our main downfall.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Berenato said that wins against rivals like Duquesne are always special. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Today was a city pride game,’ said Berenato. ‘ ‘ ‘ With the win, Pitt improves to 5-1 heading into a big game against No. 8 Maryland at the Petersen Events Center Dec. 7.