Walker pours in 30 as Panthers cruise to victory

As the first half of the Pitt women’s basketball game against Robert Morris came to a close,… As the first half of the Pitt women’s basketball game against Robert Morris came to a close, Panther freshman Marcedes Walker took a bounce pass from teammate Karlyle Lim and went up strong to score.

The layup gave Walker 13 points for the half — the same amount of points as the visitors.

But neither she nor the rest of the team was finished there.

It was only the beginning for Walker and the Panthers as they cruised to their fourth straight win, defeating the Colonials 78-59 on Wednesday night. The freshman led the way with 30 points and 14 rebounds for the Panthers (4-0), who have now won 22 straight games over Robert Morris (2-2) and are 4-0 for the first time since the 1998-99 season.

“Today was a great game,” head coach Agnus Berenato said afterwards. “We learned a lot last week, and this team is already better than last year’s.”

In the opening minutes of the game, point guard Amy Kunich floated the ball to Walker, who laid the ball in the basket to push Pitt ahead, 8-0. Kunich used accurate passes throughout the game to lead the Panthers with eight assists to go along with her 10 points.

“Kunich was a coach on the court for us today,” Berenato said. “She really pushed the ball down the court and lead strong.”

But it was Walker who demanded attention throughout the game and used her strength to earn a double-double in only 29 minutes of play. Walker’s strength never died during the game, as she ended the night with a forceful block only seconds before the final horn sounded.

Sal Buscaglia, head coach for Robert Morris, was disappointed with the performance of the team, but gave Walker a lot of respect for her performance.

“[Walker] dictated the tone of the game,” Buscaglia said. “She’s a very strong player; like a mini Shaquille O’Neal out there.”

Leading the way for the Colonials was guard Jenna Burkett, who ended the game with five three-point field goals. She finished with 21 points on the night.

The Panthers used Kunich and junior guard Katie Histed, who finished with 10 points, to rack up 12 points from behind the three-point arch.

Pitt’s inside dominance proved to be key, however. Pitt earned 46 of its 78 points from baskets shot in the paint and out-rebounded the Colonials by 19. The rebounding advantage has been a common trend in all of the Panthers’ victories.

Freshman Vika Sholokhova was also key in the Panthers’ victory. She hit three of her four free-throw attempts, finishing with nine points on the night. She also grabbed five rebounds and dished out three assists.

Jennifer Brown, a sophomore forward, worked hard to get open throughout the game, and had many open looks, but struggled with her shooting, hitting only three of her nine attempts.

“Brown made some awesome moves for us tonight; she just couldn’t connect,” Berenato said. “But I’m not worried; her shot will fall.”

Pitt will travel to Stony Brook, N.Y., this weekend for the Stony Brook Invitational, where they will face Long Beach State Friday evening. The Panthers will then go up against the host Seawolves Saturday at 4 p.m.