The Pitt women’s basketball team’s performance in any given game could quite possibly hinge… The Pitt women’s basketball team’s performance in any given game could quite possibly hinge on Shavonte Zellous.

That was the case in the women’s Big East Tournament last week in Hartford, Conn. Zellous, who was named the conference’s Most Improved Player, scored 28 points in Pitt’s 76-71 first-round win over Cincinnati.

But in Pitt’s quarterfinal matchup with Marquette, Zellous struggled to score five points and Pitt (23-8, 10-6 Big East) lost, 61-51.

Marquette moved on in the tournament and lost in the semifinals to Rutgers, the eventual Big East champions.

The Panthers will find out tonight if they will receive the program’s first NCAA Tournament bid.

Pitt 76, Cincinnati 71

The Pitt women’s basketball team came out of its first-round Big East Tournament game March 4 with a school-record 23 wins on the season. Pitt beat the Cincinnati Bearcats (15-14, 6-10), 76-71, in a close game in which the Panthers dressed only eight players.

“It was a very hard win,” Pitt head coach Agnus Berenato said. “It was a tough game to coach, hard game to play in.”

The Panthers and Bearcats exchanged the lead 12 times and were tied 11 times during the close game. Pitt pulled away in the last two minutes to secure the win and expanded its lead to seven points with just 17 seconds left.

“We had a lot of momentum, and we were playing with trust,” Cincinnati head coach Laura Pirtle said. “We just got tight in the last two minutes.”

Marcedes Walker, Shavonte Zellous, Jania Sims and Xenia Stewart all shared contributing roles for the Panthers.

Zellous’ game-high 28 points proved why she deserved the Big East’s Most Improved Player title. Walker had 13 points and 10 rebounds while Stewart added 19 points.

Sims, who was named to the Big East’s All-Rookie Team, didn’t score any points, but delivered a game-high 11 assists.

Zellous also went 12 for 12 from the free-throw line to help ensure the Panthers’ victory.

Pitt opened by taking a quick 10-point lead with an 11-0 run capped off by a Stewart 3-pointer. Pitt would build its lead to 13 points with 7:38 remaining in the first, but that wouldn’t last long as the Bearcats stormed back with a 23-3 run of their own.

Cincinnati took a 37-36 lead, taking advantage of Pitt fouls and forced passes to Walker in the low post. A 3-pointer with one second left by Ashleigh Braxton cut the Bearcats’ lead to 42-39 going into halftime and swung the momentum into Pitt’s favor.

The momentum would carry the Panthers throughout the second half as strong defensive play, including six blocks and four steals, would propel the Panthers to their eventual victory.

Marquette 61, Pitt 51

The Panthers opened up the second round of the Big East Tournament trading baskets in the early minutes with Marquette (25-6, 12-4). Pitt wouldn’t be able to hang late, though, as the Golden Eagles would eventually pull ahead and win, 61-51.

“They were the better team tonight,” Berenato said. “I am very disappointed that we are going home. We came here with plans of winning a Big East championship.”

Walker, who finished the game with 18 points and 12 rebounds, scored the first 10 points for the Panthers. Pitt used an effective half-court press defense to limit the Golden Eagles to 28 first-half points. The Panthers would go into the locker room with a one-point lead.

Marquette, a team that was plagued by numerous traveling violations and bad passes in the first half, came out in the second seemingly determined to take the lead. And it did just that by going up, 35-34, on a layup by Christina Quaye, who finished the game with 18 points.

“We had the shots, which we addressed at halftime,” Golden Eagles head coach Terri Mitchell said. “We didn’t have a good shooting percentage, but our looks were better in the second half.”

Marquette would shoot only 38 percent from the floor for the game, but that was enough for the Golden Eagles, who used a 26-14 run to build their lead to 13 points with only 34 seconds remaining.

“Sometimes you weather the storm,” Berenato said. “But not tonight. The storm got the best of us.”

Braxton scored 12 points for Pitt, all on 3-pointers.

Despite her stellar first-round performance, Zellous shot only one-of-12 from the floor and only chipped in five points in the losing effort.