Pitt Women's Basketball Entertains Drexel on Saturday
11/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 25, 2011
Pitt Game Notes (pdf) | Game Day Central | Drexel Basketball |
PITT (3-1) vs. Drexel (2-1)
Saturday, November 26, 2011 • 2 p.m.
Petersen Events Center • Pittsburgh, Pa.
MEDIA INFORMATION
Pitt Radio: Pitt IMG College Sports Radio Network (Scott Stiller/Jennifer Tuscano), WJAS AM
Internet Radio Broadcast/Video and Live Stats: www.pittsburghpanthers.com.
Pitt Coach: Pitt: Agnus Berenato, Ninth Season at Pitt (47-107), 28th Season Overall (430-371); Drexel: Denise Dillon, Ninth Season Overall and at Drexel (135-112)
Series: Pitt and Drexel are meeting for the first time in program history.
GAME PREVIEW
Pitt - winners of three-straight - continues its six-game opening homestand on Saturday, Nov. 26, hosting Drexel at the Petersen Events Center. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
Last Game Out
Sophomore guard Marquel Davis scored a game-high 26 points as Pitt women’s basketball posted its third-straight win with a 77-70 victory over Central Michigan on Sunday afternoon at the Petersen Events Center.
Freshman Brianna Kiesel added a career-high 24 points, 15 of those in the first half. The point guard also set a Petersen Events Center record from the free throw line, converting 15 from the stripe (15-of-17).
Sophomore center Leeza Burdgess registered her second-straight double-digit scoring contest, posting 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds. She recorded three assists in a single game for the third-straight outing.
The Panthers (3-1) jumped out a 10-2 lead five and a half minutes into the game following a fast break layup and subsequent free throw from Kiesel. After a CMU basket, Pitt scored the next four straight – both fast break buckets - to take its largest lead of the first half at 14-4.
The Chippewas (0-3) threatened that lead, going on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 14-12 at the 11:09 mark. Kiesel took the team on her back, netting the Panthers next six points - four of those from the free throw line – to create a 20-14 cushion. CMU cut the advantage to two points twice in the final three minutes of the period with Pitt taking a 32-28 lead at the half.
The Chippewas rolled out a 7-0 scoring spurt to get within three (46-43) with 12:55 remaining, but that would be as close as they would come. Over a 2:35 span, Pitt rolled off 11 points, five of those from Burdgess and four from Davis to build a comfortable edge en route to the 77-70 win.
About the Match-Up
Pitt and Drexel are meeting for the first time in program history. The Dragons finished the 2010-11 season with a 19-13 record and a fifth place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association. Drexel has advanced to the postseason each of the last three seasons, going to the WNIT the past two years and to the NCAA in 2009.
Drexel is in the midst of a season-long six-game road swing as today’s game is its third of the season in four games. Senior Kamile Nacickaite scored a career-high 33 points in a 67-60 victory at Akron.
A Few Connections
From 1989-92, Pitt associate head coach Patty Coyle served as an assistant at Saint Joseph’s University. In her first two seasons, the Hawks went a combined 47-15 with two NCAA Tournament appearances. Head coach Agnus Berenato grew up in the backdrop of Philadelphia in South New Jersey - Gloucester City, N.J. - just 14.9 miles from Philly.
Coyle is a native of Philadelphia, along with Drexel associate head coach Amy Mallon. Mallon, who started her collegiate career at Richmond, finished her playing days at Saint Joseph’s. In 1993, she put together one of the best single seasons in the history of Philadelphia Big 5 women’s basketball by guiding the Hawks to a 21-8 record, a Big 5 Championship and was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year.
Drexel head coach Denise Dillon is familiar to Big East basketball fans, having starred for coach Harry Perretta at Villanova from 1993-96. She was a three-time All-Big East selection.
Versus the CAA
Pitt has a 20-1 record all-time against current CAA member schools. In addition to Drexel, the Panthers have never faced Georgia State, Hofstra or UNC Wilmington. The CAA was founded in 1983 as ECAC South and became the Colonial Athletic Association in 1985. Pitt met Richmond (in consecutive seasons in 1997 and 1998, 1-1 record) and American (on three occasions) when both were members of the CAA. When Pitt last met VCU (1989-90 and 1990-91 seasons) – the school was actually a member of Sun Belt. The loss to VCU on Dec. 28, 1990 (the lone to a current CAA member) –has a Big East connection. Susan Walvius was hired at VCU in 1990 as the youngest coach in the nation. She would, of course, leave VCU for West Virginia in 1995.
The last time the Panthers met a CAA team on the hardcourt was Dec. 29, 2007, a 69-61 win over James Madison in Staten Island, N.Y. in a tournament hosted by Wagner College. Pitt had faced that same JMU squad nine months earlier in one of the most historic games in Panthers history – the first ever NCAA Championship appearance. The Panthers beat the Dukes, 71-61 on March 18, 2007 in also the first NCAA Tournament hosted by Pitt at the Petersen Events Center.
CAA School Record
Delaware 4-0
George Mason 1-0
James Madison 2-0
UNC Wilmington 0-0
Northeastern 3-0
Old Dominion 3-0
Towson 4-0
VCU 1-1
William & Mary 2-0
Total 20-1
We Like to Keep You Guessing
Pitt has had a different scoring leader in three of four games this season – Asia Logan paced the team in game one versus Hampton (12 points), Ashlee Anderson led the way versus St. Francis (29 points) and Marquel Davis was the team leader in points against Loyola (17 points) and Central Michigan (26 points).
The leader in blocked shots – that’s been the same Panther in every single game. Sophomore Kyra Dunn has posted 13 blocks in four games and is also ranked first in the Big East in that category (3.3 a game).
Coming Together
After struggling as a team with its shot in the first game (shooting 31.4 percent with season low of 16 field goals), Pitt has rebounded to shoot 46.4 percent in the past three games. The Panthers have held their opponents to a 33.2 percent clip with a low from Saint Francis of .270 (17-of-63).
Possession
The Panthers have recorded 55 offensive rebounds to opponents’ 67 in four games. The difference can be seen in the amount of field goals averaged. Pitt,in four games, is averaging 58.5 field goals a game to its four opponents’ 62.7, four possessions.
Two Pete Records Fall
Sophomore Kyra Dunn collected six blocks against Loyola on Nov. 18, setting a Petersen Events Center record by a Pitt women’s basketball player. She topped the previous mark of five swats posted by three other players, lastly Shayla Scott vs. St John’s on March 1, 2010. The six rejections are also the most by a Pitt player since 2001 (6 blocks, Bettina Love, at Notre Dame, Feb. 7, 2001).
Freshman Brianna Kiesel made quite a few trips to the free throw line on Sunday in a home win over Central Michigan – and connected on 15 free throws (15-of-17), a Petersen Events Center record. The previous record of free throws made on the Panthers’ current home court was 12 – both in the same season (Mandy Wittenmyer, vs. Howard, Dec. 31, 2002; Laine Selwyn, vs. Penn State, Dec. 14, 2002), while the school record is 16 for free throws made is (Selwyn, Feb. 26, 2002).
Kiesel’s 15 made free throws in the building – which is celebrating its 10th season this campaign – is also a high on the men’s side, topping Carl Krauser and his 13 made free throws on Jan. 23, 2006 against Syracuse.
Making Most of Opportunity
Pitt collected 31 points off of 24 Loyola turnovers – the most for a Panthers team since 2008. The last time the Panthers scored that many points off of turnovers was on December 16, 2008 in a 98-41 win over Wagner (36). Pitt followed that performance with 26 points score off of
Producing Results
Sophomore Marquel Davis scored a (then) career-high 17 points, her first career double figure outing on Friday, Nov. 18 against Loyola. She also collected a career-best five rebounds. Fifteen (15) of Davis’ 17 points came over a five minute span in the second half. Eight of those 17 points were scored in just a 95-second spurt.
The guard from Fredericksburg, Virginia was not done – topping that performance with a 26 point effort in a 77-70 win over Central Michigan on Sunday afternoon. Davis is shooting 20-of-31 (.645) from the floor in the past two games, while averaging 21.5 points in the past two outings.
Davis along with freshman Brianna Kiesel both scored 20-plus points on Sunday in a win over Central Michigan. The last time two Pitt players scored 20 or more points in the same game was on Nov. 24, 2009 in a 75-70 win over Saint Francis. Taneisha Harrison had 25 points and Jania Sims added 23 points to lead the Panthers to the victory, which also happened to be head coach Agnus Berenato’s 400 career win.
First Year Jitters, Not Really
First year player Brianna Kiesel shook off the jitters from the first game and built quite the stat sheet in her second career game versus Saint Francis. The Utica, N.Y. native scored 17 points (8-of-16 FG) and added nine rebounds and eight assists to her stat line. Kiesel was on pace to become the first player in nine years to register a triple double. Laine Selwyn (1999-2002) holds the distinction of being the only player in Pitt women’s history to accomplish the feat, achieving it on two occasions. She last did so on Dec. 29, 2002 against Norfolk State, recording 11 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds.
Kiesel kept up the momentum in the last Panthers outing, a 77-70 win over Central Michigan – registering her first 20-plus point performance. The guard posted 24 points, 15 of those from the free throw line. Over Pitt’s three-game winning streak, Kiesel is averaging 16.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 6.0 assists.
One Step Further
Kiesel recorded eight field goals of the 31 total on Nov. 15 against St. Francis – and add that number to the eight assists and the freshman point guard had a hand in 16 of the 31 field goals made (51.6 percent). The sophomore is leading the team in assists, averaging 5.0 per game and ranked tied for fifth in the Big East.
Could Not Miss
Redshirt sophomore Ashlee Anderson broke out for a career-best 29 points against Saint Francis on Nov. 15, the most scored by a Pitt player since Taneisha Harrison registered 30 points last season at West Virginia (2/5/11). The tally marked the first time a Pitt player under head coach Agnus Berenato (now in her ninth season) registered 29 points – the most prior was the 23 scored by Harrison (as then-freshman) off the bench at Wagner on Dec. 30, 2007.
Anderson not only reached a career-high in the scoring column, but also in rebounds (8) and field goals made (13) and attempted (20). The Chicago product failed to score versus Hampton in the season opener, only the seventh time in 32 games she did not register at least a point in a game. Anderson is second on the team in field goal percentage, shooting at a 51.1 percent clip.
Adjusting Just Fine
Redshirt sophomore Abby Dowd is one of only three players to have notched double figures in two of Pitt’s four games this season. Dowd, who arrived at Pitt from University at Buffalo and joined the team last season as a walk-on, had 14 versus Saint Francis on Nov. 15 and recorded 11 versus Loyola. She leads the team in three-pointers with nine of the team’s total 12 registered. The first year Panther has started every game at the two-guard position and has posted a combined nine rebounds and three assists in past two games (Central Michigan, Loyola) – that after a combined three and none in the same categories in the first two games (Hampton, St. Francis).
Rebounding Machine
Redshirt sophomore Leeza Burdgess is averaging 8.3 rebounds a game (12th in the Big East rankings) coming off the bench. She pulled down 10 in the season opener against Hampton, nine on the defensive side. Burdgess posted 12 rebounds against St. Francis in 23 minutes.
The center has also been in the giving mood – finding her guards on the wings and delivering nine assists in the past three games. She is ranked third on the team in assists per game (2.3). Burdgess is leading the team in field goal percentage (.565), ranked 10th among Big East leaders).
Not the Only One
Sophomore Kyra Dunn has earned a start in every game this season, the first four career starts for the California product. Dunn tallied her first career double-double against Loyola with 10 points and a career best 13 rebounds.
Dunn has logged 25 of her team best 30 rebounds in the past two games and is ranked fifthin the Big East in rebounding (9.3 per game). Dunn is averaging 28. 5 minutes a game - that compared to just one 20-plus game appearance in 27 contests a season ago.
In the Paint
Thirty-two of the Panthers’ 78 points in their win over Saint Francis came in the paint. That total was the most for a Pitt team since the 34 recorded last season at home against Cincinnati (Feb. 1, 2011) – a span of 11 games. Pitt posted 34 or more paint points in just 10 of 31 games in 2010-11 – but, have now recorded 34 or more points in the post in two consecutive games, registering 36 each against Loyola and Central Michigan.
Better Results Equals Wins
As a team, the Panthers recorded 53 rebounds versus Saint Francis on Nov. 17. That number is the most since a road game at Valparaiso last year on Dec. 11 as Pitt grabbed 58 rebounds in that contest. After recording just 16 field goals against Hampton on Nov. 11, Pitt nearly doubled that total versus Saint Francis with 31 field goals. In addition, the Panthers tripled their assist output from game one to two – from five to 16 dimes. Pitt posted a season-high 19 assists against Loyola on Nov. 18.
From the Low to the High
The 23-point loss to Hampton in the season opener on Nov. 11 was the most lopsided loss since a 32-point setback against Notre Dame at home last season (Nov. 15, 2011). Pitt followed the 20-plus point loss with a 28-point victory over Saint Francis on Nov. 15. The 20-or more point loss followed by a 20-plus win feat also occurred last season. Pitt dropped a 93-55 contest (-38) to Duke on Dec. 4, but rebounded with a 73-45 win over Loyola (+28) in the very next game.