Pitt slips past Mountaineers

Freshman guard Shavonte Zellous hit two free throws with less than 10 seconds to play to lead… Freshman guard Shavonte Zellous hit two free throws with less than 10 seconds to play to lead the Pitt women’s basketball team to their first win in Morgantown, W.Va., in 25 years, beating West Virginia, 62-58 on Sunday.

The Panthers (18-7 overall, 9-5 Big East) moved into a tie for third place in the Big East Conference with the win, their first in 11 tries inside the Coliseum in Morgantown. Head coach Agnus Berenato’s bunch has now won six of their last seven games, including four straight on the road, to put themselves in prime position for a strong seed in the upcoming Big East tournament.

It is just the fifth time in program history that the Panthers have won at least 18 games.

The Panthers pulled away from the Mountaineers (12-12, 4-9) as the first half ended, leading by eight at halftime and extending the lead to as many as 16 in the second half before the Mountaineers eventually tied it in the final two minutes.

The Panthers opened the second half with a quick 13-5 run, making the score 45-29, with less than 16 minutes to play. The Mountaineers, however, took over the boards and paint en route to a 27-11 run that tied the game at 56. West Virginia out-rebounded the Panthers 31-29, something that doesn’t come easily with the Panthers’ post presence featuring Marcedes Walker, who picked up 12 rebounds of her own to go along with her 17 points, her 10th double-double of the season.

During the run the Panthers didn’t have much of an answer for the Mountaineers’ post play, highlighted by Olayinka Sanni’s 17 points on 8-of-15 shooting, and Chakhia Cole’s 13 points, six rebounds and seven assists. The Mountaineers outscored the Panthers 34-14 in the paint but were plagued by problems at the free-throw line. For the game, West Virginia shot 6-of-15 from the charity stripe, while the Panthers made the difference at the line shooting 20-of-24, including a 9-of-9 performance by Zellous.

With the game tied at 56 and less than two minutes to play, Cheron Taylor hit two big free throws after she was fouled by Chakhia Cole, putting the Panthers up 58-56. With 1:28 to go in the game, Mallorie Winn committed her fifth foul of the game, but it didn’t hurt as Cole missed both free throws and Walker grabbed the rebound. After Karlyle Lim missed a jump shot, the Mountaineers had yet another chance to tie down by two, but Sanni missed a jump shot and Cole turned over the ball. Zellous then hit four free throws in the final 17 seconds to ice the win for the Panthers, who have clinched a bid in the Big East tournament, with their seed yet to be determined.

Junior guard Winn was her consistent and impressive self, finishing with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting, four rebounds, two assists, a block and two steals. Zellous finished with 11 points, and guard Maddy Brown came off the bench to add eight points, including two 3-pointers.

The Panthers finish the season with a home game against Rutgers and a road contest at Notre Dame. The Rutgers game is Saturday at 2 p.m. and will honor the Panthers’ only senior, Cheron Taylor, before the contest.