Women’s hoops beats Hoyas, ties school wins record

In a game filled with ups and downs, the Pitt women’s basketball team managed to finish the… In a game filled with ups and downs, the Pitt women’s basketball team managed to finish the regular season tied for a school-record 22 wins with a 68-58 victory at Georgetown Monday night.

Pitt (22-7, 10-6) had four players pick up double digits in points. Marcedes Walker led the way with her sixth double-double in her past seven games by scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

Danielle Taylor, Shavonte Zellous and Xenia Stewart each chipped in by scoring 15, 14 and 10 points, respectively. Stewart also had six assists and five steals.

The two teams opened up the game making shot for shot, the Hoyas holding the lead at 11-10 just five minutes in. But Pitt would storm ahead, as it went on an 11-2 run in just four minutes of play. That brought the score to 21-13 in favor of the Panthers.

Pitt would not make another field goal until 1:59 remained in the first half, but it would shoot five-for-eight from the free throw line in that span. Georgetown scored eight points during that period, but Pitt still held the lead, 28-21.

The Panthers would go into the half up 32-22, getting seven points from Walker and six from Stewart.

Pitt head coach Agnus Berenato felt that her team, despite logging a respectable shooting clip, still didn’t play a solid game overall.

“I feel like we shot well, but our motion leading to the basket was not strong today,” Berenato told www.pittsburghpanthers.com. “We didn’t attack well, but maybe we were getting shots where we wanted them. Overall, we are happy with our performance.”

The second half would open up much like the start of the game with the two teams exchanging baskets through the 12-minute mark. Pitt then started to pull away with points from Zellous, Walker and Ashleigh Braxton, who finished the game with five points and two rebounds.

The Panthers would build their biggest lead of the day as a free throw by Taylor put Pitt up by 15 with 16:56 remaining.

The Hoyas would try to attempt another comeback by closing the gap to four points with just under a minute to play, but missed shots and turnovers fueled the Panthers to build their lead back up to 10 – the eventual margin of victory.

Pitt finished the season with 22 wins, which ties the team record that is held by last year’s Panther squad.

According to Berenato, the Panthers have helped secure themselves a spot in the NCAA Tournament with win 22.

“Tonight was big, getting our 22nd win,” Berenato added in a release. “With getting to 22, we are most assuredly in the NCAA Tournament, and that is really exciting. We had a great road crowd tonight having a few local players, and they were really loud for us.”

The local players who Berenato spoke of are Stewart from Bowie, Md., Braxton from Woodbridge, Va., and forward Selena Nwude from Riverdale, Md. Nwude finished the game with one block.

Pitt received a six seed in this weekend’s Big East Tournament in Hartford, Conn., and will play 11th-seeded Cincinnati on Saturday.