Pitt drops seventh straight

Despite Amy Kunich’s best performance since rejoining the starting lineup, Pitt was… Despite Amy Kunich’s best performance since rejoining the starting lineup, Pitt was unable to pull out a win against Rutgers Wednesday night, falling 75-61.

Playing in her sixth game back from a foot stress fracture, Kunich played the entire game, the first time this season any Pitt player has played a full 40 minutes.

“I couldn’t take her out,” Pitt head coach Agnus Berenato said. “She was our leader and handled Rutgers’ pressure really well.”

“I could go another 40 minutes right now,” said Kunich, answering any questions about her endurance coming off the injury.”

Kunich and LaToya Kincaid chipped in with 14 points each for Pitt, while Cappie Pondexter led all scorers, dropping in 21 points to go along with nine rebounds and seven assists.

The loss, which was the Panthers’ seventh in a row and eighth straight to the Scarlet Knights, drops Pitt to 6-15 overall and 2-9 in the Big East, while Rutgers improves to 14-8 and 6-4 in the conference.

Pitt continued to struggle from the field, shooting less than 40 percent and failing for the fourth consecutive game to make more than 18 field goals.

Like its last two games, Pitt started off quickly by jumping out to a 5-2 lead following a three-pointer by Kunich and a jump shot by Allisha Morris. Playing in place of Jennifer Brown, Morris scored eight points on four-of-six shooting in her first start since Dec. 3.

“Allisha looked to score, not just shoot tonight,” Kunich said. “We have to score to win, and we haven’t been scoring that many points the past couple of games.”

The teams would trade baskets for the first eight minutes of the game, with Rutgers holding a 16-14 advantage with 11:51 remaining in the half.

But the Scarlet Knights would score 11 of the next 12 points to grab a 12-point lead that the Panthers would not be able to overcome. Rutgers was able to keep a double-digit lead for most of the half, but Pitt would not go away quietly.

Katie Histed cut the deficit to nine points with 4:38 remaining in the first half after scoring on an outlet pass from Stacey Moore. After the Scarlet Knights built their lead back to 11 points, the Panthers cut it to five with less than a minute remaining following two free throws and a layup by Kunich.

Pitt looked to cut the lead down even more before halftime, but Rebecca Richman finished a layup to give Rutgers a 38-31 lead at halftime.

The Panthers used the momentum to cut into the lead in the second half. Histed nailed a three-pointer to open the half to pull Pitt within four, but that was as close as the Panthers would get.

Rutgers went on a 15-5 run to build its lead up to 14 points following a three-pointer by Pondexter – one of three she hit on the night.

Pitt scrapped back, pulling within 11 after another three by Histed cut the lead to 57-46 with 10:56 remaining in the game. But the Scarlet Knights were able to use their height advantage inside the paint to increase their lead to 17 points with 4:38 remaining.

Rutgers outscored the Panthers 34-12 in the paint and out-rebounded Pitt, 38-29. The Scarlet Knights also blocked five Pitt shots, led by Richman who had five.

The Panthers seemed to gain a little hope when they cut Rutgers’ lead to 12 after five quick points from Sheila Stufflet, who finished the game with six points.

“Sheila is the glue to our team,” Berenato said. “She is a sense of balance to our team. I was happy to see her score. She must look to be more aggressive.”

But it wasn’t enough as the Scarlet Knights held on to win the game.

The Panthers will return to action on Saturday to face the Georgetown Hoyas. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center.

-staff writer Brian Goldman contributed to this story.