Clutch Fourth Quarter Powers Pitt over Virginia, 62-54

Sunday, January 22

Pittsburgh, Pa.

12:30 PM

Pitt

(12-7, 3-3ACC)

Virginia

(13-6, 2-4ACC)

Virginia

Pitt

Clutch Fourth Quarter Powers Pitt over Virginia, 62-54

1/22/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Jan. 22, 2017

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PITTSBURGH - Pitt women's basketball (12-7, 3-3 ACC) hit four 3-pointers over a three-minute stretch in the fourth quarter to storm back and defeat Virginia (13-6, 2-4 ACC), 62-54, in front of a crowd of 2,224 Sunday afternoon at Petersen Events Center.

After leading by as many as eight before halftime, the Panthers slumped in the third quarter and trailed by six with 5:30 remaining in the game. Subsequently, Pitt went 4-of-4 from the 3-point line and 5-of-5 from the charity stripe (all free throws made by sophomore Brenna Wise) during the final five minutes to take back the lead and claim the victory.

Wise was a perfect 11-of-11 from the charity stripe en route to a career-high 26 points. Her outing marked Pitt's sixth perfect game of 10 or more free throws in school history, and the first since Brianna Kiesel hit a school-record 12-of-12 from the charity stripe at NC State Feb. 5, 2015. Wise is the fourth Panther ever to hit 11 or more free throws in a perfect game from the charity stripe, alongside Kiesel, Shavonte Zellous (12-of-12 vs. Cincinnati, March 3, 2007) and Latia Howard (11-of-11 vs. Duquesne, Dec. 21, 1996).

Sophomore Kauai Bradley had a near double-double with 10 points and seven rebounds. Freshman guard Alayna Gribble had nine points, with two triples coming during the three-minute hot streak in the fourth quarter.

It was a slow start to the game for both teams, as they shot a combined 1-of-11 to begin play. Bradley scored the first points for Pitt at the 5:59 mark, hitting a triple to make it 3-2. The teams traded leads and then were tied 5-5 on a Wise layup. The Cavaliers had a short 5-0 run to take a 10-5 lead with 2:15 to go, but the Panthers answered with a 7-0 run of their own to lead 12-10 with 27 seconds before the end of the period. Virginia's Dominique Toussaint tied it up, 12-12, on a jumper a few seconds before the buzzer.

Pitt opened with an 8-1 run in the second quarter to lead by seven, 20-13, at the 6:40 mark. The Panthers reached a largest margin of eight points, 27-19, after a Bradley jumper with 48 seconds to go before halftime. Mone' Jones hit a triple to make it 27-19 at 00:26, but Jasmine Whitney drove and finished a layup at the buzzer to return the Panthers' lead to seven at halftime, 29-22.

The Cavaliers made it a one-point game with a 6-0 run, and eventually took a 38-37 lead with 1:10 to go in the third quarter. It was their first lead since the two-minute mark in the first. The Panthers held on as Whitney drained a jumper from the elbow with 00:21 left in the quarter to gain a 39-38 lead entering the fourth.

Virginia used another 6-0 run to gain a five-point lead at 8:05, and reached a largest lead of six after a Breyana Mason triple at 5:30 (49-43). At that point, the Panthers found their stroke and thus began the hot streak. Wise and Gribble hit back-to-back triples to tie the game at 3:35 (49-49), and then two more from Bradley and Gribble (after UVA made two free throws) made it 55-41 with two minutes. The Cavaliers were eventually forced in to a fouling situation, putting Wise on the line where she made five in a row to end the game, 62-54.

WITH THE WIN...

- Pitt earned 10 or more wins at Petersen Events Center for the second time in the last three seasons, and for the third time since the 2009-10 season.
- The Panthers extended their win streak against the Cavaliers to five games. Pitt has claimed five of the seven all-time meetings between the programs. Pitt has not lost to UVA since Nov. 22, 1996, at Fitzgerald Field House (64-55).
- Pitt improved to 3-3 in ACC play, marking their best record since joining the league in 2013-14. Pitt started 3-3 in 2014-15 en route to a 9-7 finish.

EXPERIENCE THE ACTION

All individual tickets for Pitt women's basketball home games are general admission and available for purchase for $5 each by calling the Panthers Ticket Office at 800-643-7488 or by visiting PittsburghPanthers.com. Group tickets and season tickets are also on sale.

UP NEXT

Pitt will hit the road to meet NC State Thursday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m. in Raleigh, N.C.

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