Smothering Defense Powers Pitt To 78-42 Home Victory Over Loyola (MD)

Wednesday, December 7

Pittsburgh, Pa.

6:00 PM

Pitt

6-3,0-0ACC

Loyola (MD)

4-6,0-0Patriot

Loyola Maryland

Pittsburgh

Smothering Defense Powers Pitt To 78-42 Home Victory Over Loyola (MD)

12/7/2022 9:01:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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PITTSBURGH – The Pitt women's basketball team (6-3, 0-0 ACC) snapped their three-game losing streak Wednesday night at the Petersen Events Center as they used some tough defense to earn the 78-42 victory over Loyola (MD).

Pitt held the Greyhounds to just 17.9% shooting from the floor in the win which marks the lowest field goal percentage by a Pitt opponent since the Panthers joined the ACC in 2013-14. The 42 points scored by Loyola (MD) also marked the third lowest scoring total against Pitt since White took over the program in 2018-19. Pitt has now held four of their first nine opponents to 45 points or less, a program record for the Panthers.

The Panthers were led offensively by Avery Strickland who finished off her career night with 17 points, two rebounds and two steals off the bench. She went 7-for-8 from the floor and 3-for-4 from behind the arc in the win. Gabby Hutcherson also came off the bench and netted a season-high for Pitt as she finished with 12 points, five rebounds and two assists on 5-for-9 shooting. Dayshanette Harris had 10 points and four steals while Liatu King finished off her night with nine points and four boards.

ESSENTIAL GAME INFO
Pitt starting lineup: Marley Washenitz, Dayshanette Harris, Emy Hayford, Liatu King, Amber Brown
Loyola (MD) starting lineup: Koi Sims, Lex Therien, Kelly Ratigan, Taleah Dixon, Bri Rozzi
Records: Pitt (6-3, 0-0 ACC) | Loyola (MD) (4-6, 0-0 Patriot)
Location: Petersen Events Center | Pittsburgh, PA

FIRST QUARTER

Pitt opened the scoring in the quarter with back-to-back layups by Liatu King and Emy Hayford to take the early 4-0 lead.
After a pair of Greyhound free throws cut the Pitt lead to 6-5, Dayshanette Harris, Maliyah Johnson and King made three straight layups to push the lead to 12-5 with four minutes to go in the first quarter.
The Panthers didn't score down the stretch of the quarter but they took the 12-7 lead into the second quarter as they held the Greyhounds to 0-for-12 from the floor over the final three minutes.
Pitt held the Greyhounds to 1-for-15 shooting in the opening quarter, the Panthers best defensive quarter of the season.

SECOND QUARTER

Gabby Hutcherson opened the scoring with a hook shot in the lane before Harris finished off a jumper to push the Pitt lead to 16-7 early in the second quarter.
After a Loyola (MD) triple, the Panthers went on a 14-0 run to push their lead out to 30-10 with two minutes to go in the quarter. Amber Brown opened the run with a layup before Avery Strickland took over the game with nine of the next 12 points for Pitt. The nine first half points for Strickland marked a career-high.
Harris finished the scoring in the second with a jumper before the buzzer to send Pitt to the locker room leading 32-14.
Loyola (MD) went 3-for-27 (11.1%) from the floor in the opening half as Pitt opened up the 18-point lead.

THIRD QUARTER

Hayford opened the scoring with her first triple of the season and then another great move to the bucket and layup to push the Pitt lead to 37-14 less than two minutes into the second half.
The Panthers then got hot from deep as Harris and Hutcherson connected on back-to-back triples to push the lead to 45-17 midway through the quarter.
After some free throws by the Greyhounds, Strickland and Johnson netted triples of their own to push the Pitt lead to 55-24 with two minutes to go.
Hutcherson finished off the scoring with a jumper in the lane as the Panthers took the 58-29 lead into the final quarter.
Pitt held Loyola (MD) to 3-for-16 from the floor in the quarter but the Greyhounds scored eight free throws for their best scoring quarter of the night.

FOURTH QUARTER

Destiny Strother opened the final quarter with a corner triple to get the Panthers offense going as they were able to out-score Loyola (MD) 20-13 in the final 10 minutes of play.
Sandrine Clesca came off the Pitt bench and finished off an old fashion three-point play while Taisha Exanor scored four points in the quarter to help Pitt earn the dominant 78-42 home victory.
Pitt forced seven turnovers in the final frame while also holding the Greyhounds to just 4-for-13 shooting.

TEAM STATS

The Panthers had 19 assists on 32 made field goals
Pitt had 13 steals, their fourth game with double figure steals this season
Loyola (MD) held the 39-37 edge in rebounds including a 21-11 advantage in offensive rebounds
Pitt shot 42.9% from behind the arc while holding the Greyhounds to 26.1% from deep

GAME FLOW
Largest lead: Pitt – 37, Loyola (MD) - 0
Lead changes: 0
Times tied: 0
Time with lead: Pitt – 39:44 | Loyola (MD) – 0:00
Points off turnovers: Pitt - 28 | Loyola (MD) - 7
Points in paint: Pitt – 36 | Loyola (MD) - 8
Second chance points: Pitt – 13 | Loyola (MD) - 9
Fast break points: Pitt – 20 | Loyola (MD) - 0
Bench points: Pitt – 46 | Loyola (MD) - 6

UP NEXT

Pitt returns to action on Sunday afternoon as they welcome Ball State to the Petersen Events Center for a 12:00 pm tip. Sunday's game will air live on ACC Network.

PITT NOTES
Team

With the win, Pitt improves to 8-0 against Loyola (MD) all-time including a 6-0 mark at the Pete
Pitt shot 54.2% from the floor in the win, their second game this season shooting at least 50% from the floor
The Panthers held Loyola (MD) to 14 points in the first half, marking the lowest first half point total against Pitt in program history
Pitt held Loyola (MD) to just 17.9% shooting from the floor which marked the lowest shooting percentage against Pitt since joining the ACC in 2013-14
The Pitt defense has held 37 of their last 39 opponents to 45% or less shooting from the floor
Pitt had three players score in double figures for the fourth time this season

Avery Strickland

Finished off her night with a career-high 17 points, two rebounds and two steals in 22 minutes of work
Went 7-for-8 from the floor and 3-for-4 from behind the arc in the win
Posted a +18 plus/minus rating in the win, the best of her college career

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