City Game Up Next For Women's Hoops On Saturday Afternoon

PITTSBURGH – The Pitt women's basketball team (2-2, 0-0 ACC) is looking for their second straight win over crosstown rival Duquesne on Saturday afternoon inside the Petersen Events Center as the Panthers welcome the Dukes for the 38^th meeting between the two schools. Tip on Saturday is set for 2:00 pm.

Saturday's game will be the Panthers Gold Out game as fans are encouraged to wear their Pitt gold to the fan. Fans in attendance will receive a gold shaker and there will be post game autographs with select Pitt players on the court.

HOW TO FOLLOW

Saturday's game will air on the ACC Network Extra by clicking HERE.
Live stats of the game can be found by clicking HERE.
Live updates throughout the game will also be posted on Twitter by following the Pitt women's basketball account @Pitt_WBB.

THE SERIES

This meeting marks the 38th off all-time between the two programs with the Panthers owning the 21-16 edge in the series.
Pitt won the meeting between the two teams last year at Duquesne by the score of 66-58.
Prior to last year, Duquesne had won four straight in the series.

A WIN WOULD...

Give Pitt a 3-1 record on their home floor this season.
Be the 22nd all-time against the Dukes, fourth most against a single school in program history.
Improve the Panthers all-time record inside the Petersen Events Center to 144-119 (.548).

STORYLINES

The 2019-20 version of the Pitt Panthers features five returning players and seven newcomers. The newcomers are comprised of two transfers and five freshmen student-athletes.
Graduate student Aysia Bugg will return to the Panthers lineup this season for her sixth season after sustaining blood clots last season that forced her to miss the final 26 games. Bugg is enjoying a strong start to the season as she ranks second in the ACC averaging 19.3 ppg.

THE OPENING TIP

The new-look Panthers enter Saturday's City Game against Duquesne with a 2-2 record after downing Fairleigh Dickinson last time out on School Day at the Pete.
The newcomers for the Panthers have proved to be a key to the success of the team so far this season. The freshman duo of Amber Brown and Emy Hayford each notched double figure rebounds while Dayshanette Harris netted nine points, six assists and four rebounds in the win over the Knights.

LAST TIME OUT

The Panthers got back to their winning ways on Tuesday afternoon as they notched the 69-60 School Day game win over Fairleigh Dickinson. The win gives Pitt an 8-3 all-time record in School Day games.
Aysia Bugg led the Panthers in scoring for the third straight game as she netted 17 points while Amber Brown had a strong game with nine points, a career-high 12 rebounds and two blocks.
Freshman Emy Hayford had a big game off the bench for Pitt as she grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and eight points across 32 minutes.
As a team, Pitt dominated the glass as they owned a 48-33 edge in rebounds while outscoring the Knights 36-20 inside the paint.
Pitt also scored in double figures in the fast break for the third straight game as they outscored FDU 16-5 in the open court.

HAYFORD HAS A DAY

Freshman guard Emy Hayford is going to be relied upon to give the Panthers a spark off the bench this season and she has responded in a big way over the last two games.
The gifted guard out of the Netherlands had a career afternoon off the bench on Tuesday as she grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds, two offensive, to go along with eight points, an assist and a block across 32 minutes.
Over her last two games, Hayford is averaging 26.5 minutes, 10.5 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting 42.1% off the Pitt bench.
Hayford earned international experience before Pitt as she played for the Netherlands National Team.

ALL DAY LONG

Playing the point guard position as a freshman is one of the most difficult things to do but to come in and start at point guard is almost unheard of.
Freshman Dayshanette Harris has handled the reins of the Pitt offense since her first day on campus and she is showing flashes of being a star for the Panthers.
Last time out, Harris finished off her strongest game of her young career with nine points, a career-high six assists and four rebounds across 29 minutes in the win over Fairleigh Dickinson. Harris showed off her great vision with the six assists and her dynamic slashing ability all game long.
On the year, Harris is averaging 26.3 minutes, 7.0 points, 3.5 assists, 2.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals. She ranks 11th in the ACC in assists/game (3.5 apg).

NON-CONFERENCE DOMINATION

The Panthers have been dominant in the non-conference portion of their schedule as they have posted 15 straight winning seasons.
Pitt has recorded at least eight nonconference victories in each season since 2003-04 when they had a losing record of 4-6.
Over the past five seasons, Pitt owns a 47-23 (.671) record against nonconference opponents.
Since joining the ACC, Pitt owns a 39-14 (.736) record against non-conference opponents inside the Petersen Events Center.

NEXT UP

Pitt will head down to the Sunshine State for a pair of games over Thanksgiving break as they will take part in the Daytona Beach Invitational. Pitt will take on Ohio on Friday, Nov. 29 at 3:30 pm before closing out the tournament against Ole Miss on Saturday, Nov. 30 at 5:45 pm.
The three-game road swing will come to a close on Thursday, Dec. 5 as the Panthers head to Happy Valley to take on Penn State at 7:00 pm in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.

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