Panthers end losing streak with win over St. John’s

The women’s basketball team snapped a three-game losing skid Saturday night against St…. The women’s basketball team snapped a three-game losing skid Saturday night against St. John’s, as sophomore guard Haley Harguth connected on five-of-eight shots from three-point range.

Harguth tallied a season- and game-high 20 points, while Pitt picked up the much-needed road victory, 75-51. Coming off the bench, Harguth also went three-of-three from the charity stripe, picked up four steals and shot 60 percent from the field (six-of-10).

“It felt good to finally have a solid shooting game and contribute to the win,” Harguth said.

Pitt retaliated against Big East foe St. John’s (6-10 overall, 0-5 conference) as the Panthers lost their previous three conference matches.

With the ninth victory of the season, Pitt (9-6, 1-3) has already surpassed its win total of the 2001-2002 season, when the team went 8-19. The Panthers also thwarted their woes on the road in the Big East, shattering an eight-game conference losing streak on the road dating back to 2001.

Freshman guard Jessica Allen sunk two three-point shots in the opening minutes of the game to put the Panthers ahead 10-2, and the team never looked back.

Despite a failed attempt at a comeback, including a three-pointer by junior guard Shemika Stevens and a three-point play by junior Crystal Andrews that cut the Red Storm gap within seven points of the lead, a 12-0 run by Pitt closed the first half.

This gave the Panthers a 37-18 halftime advantage after holding St. John’s to a dismal 25-percent field goal shooting. The Pitt defense also held the Red Storm scoreless from the 4:34 mark.

Pitt continued to dominate St. John’s, who have dropped five straight games, leading by as much as 35 points in the second half.

The Panthers forced the Red Storm to commit 32 turnovers to Pitt’s 16, while gathering a season-best 18 team steals.

“The key to the game, as we try to maintain every game, was our defensive intensity,” Harguth said. “We were able to keep them from getting into their offense and we got good shots on the other end.”

Four Panthers, including Harguth, reached double scoring figures in the 25-point victory. Senior forward Mandy Wittenmyer added 14 points and three steals.

Senior guard Laine Selwyn and junior forward LaToya Kincaid chipped in 11 points each. Selwyn also grabbed a game-high eight boards, three steals and six assists. Selwyn is currently second in the Big East with 6.86 assists per game.

Pitt also was perfect from the line in the second half, shooting six-of-six.

St. John’s had a strong showing by Stevens, who led the Red Storm with 12 points, including a seven-of-eight performance from the free-throw line. Sophomore center Patrycja Gulak followed Stevens with 10 points and eight rebounds.

Pitt will look to mount a comeback in conference action as it takes on the Miami Hurricanes at home Wednesday night. The Panthers are 6-1 at their new facility.

“[Miami] have already proven to be a good team this year, so we are excited about playing them at home and hopefully getting another win,” Harguth said. “We have goals that we are focused on achieving, and every game gives us an opportunity to get closer to where we want to go.”