Panthers Open ACC Tournament Vs. #10 Duke Wednesday Afternoon In Greensboro

GREENSBORO, NC – After closing out their regular season Sunday at home, the Pitt women's basketball team (11-18, 2-16 ACC) heads to Greensboro Wednesday afternoon to take on No. 10 Duke in the First Round of the 2022 ACC Tournament in the Greensboro Coliseum. The Panthers and Blue Devils will tip at 3:30 pm on Regional Sports Networks.

HOW TO FOLLOW

Wednesday's game will air live on RSN (Regional Sports Networks) with Tom Werme and Debbie Antonelli on the call. You can watch the game by clicking HERE.
You can also listen to the game HERE as the voice of Pitt women's basketball, Josh Rowntree, will have the call from Greensboro starting at 3:15 pm.
Live stats for the game can be accessed 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 WITH DUKE

This meeting marks the 14th between the two teams with Duke owning the 13-0 record.
These teams have met three times on a neutral court with Duke winning all three games including once in the ACC Tournament (2019).
The Blue Devils defeated Pitt 54-39 earlier this season in Pittsburgh.

ABOUT THE BLUE DEVILS

Duke closed out the regular season with a 16-12 overall record and a 7-11 ACC mark as they earned the #10 seed in the ACC Tournament. The Blue Devils lost five of their last six games.
Duke is being led offensively by freshman Shayeann Day-Wilson who is averaging 12.3 points, 3.5 assists and 2.9 rebounds while connecting on 41 three-pointers.
Celeste Taylor is enjoying a nice season as she is averaging 10.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and a team-high 1.9 steals while hitting 20 threes. Lexi Gordon is averaging 9.4 points and 3.2 rebounds while Elizabeth Balogun is averaging 8.2 points and 4.3 rebounds.
As a team, Duke is averaging 65.8 points per game while allowing 62.6 points per contest. They shoot 41.5% from the floor while holding the slim edge in rebounding on the year averaging 38.7 per game while allowing 36.5 per game.

PANTHERS IN THE ACC TOURNAMENT

The game against Duke on Wednesday marks the Panthers' 11^th ACC Tournament game in program history.
Pitt currently owns a 2-8 record in ACC Tournament games.
The Panthers earned their highest seed in the ACC Tournament in 2015 as they were the No. 7 seed and played #15 Virginia Tech in the second round.
The last win in the ACC Tournament for Pitt came on Mar. 4, 2020 as Pitt collected the 67-65 victory over No. 10 Notre Dame in the first round. Dayshanette Harris hit the game-winning floater in the lane to secure the win for Pitt as she finished off her first ACC Tournament game with a double-double, 20 points and 10 rebounds.
The first ACC Tournament win in program history came on Mar. 2, 2016 as the Panthers defeated No. 13 North Carolina 82-72 in overtime.

STORYLINES

The Panthers have continued to put an emphasis on rebounding the basketball and it shows. Pitt currently leads the ACC and ranks 9th in the NCAA in rebounds per game (44.0) and 5th in total rebounds (1,276). The 1,276 rebounds are the most in a single regular season in program history while the per game average (44.0) is the third best in program history.
Pitt currently ranks 2nd in the ACC and 15th in the NCAA with 144 blocked shots on the year. Junior Rita Igbokwe has been the backbone of the Pitt defense as she has 66 blocks on the year and now sits alone in 9th place on the Panthers' all-time blocks list with 155 career rejections.

THE OPENING TIP

Pitt opens up the 2022 ACC Tournament with a First Round game against #10 Duke on Wednesday at 3:30 pm inside the Greensboro Coliseum. This is the second game of the season between the two teams as Duke won 54-39 at Pitt in early February
Pitt and South Carolina (#1 FG% defense) are the only teams in the nation to hold at least 28 opponents to 45% or less shooting from the floor this season.
Sophomore Liatu King has picked up her play down the stretch for Pitt as she is averaging 12.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 blocks over her last four games. She has scored in double figures a career-high 10 times while grabbing 10+ boards six times.

LAST TIME OUT VS. FLORIDA STATE

Pitt was able to cut their deficit to two late against Florida State on Sunday but they weren't able to collect the victory as they fell at home 57-52.
The Panthers were led offensively by Amber Brown who netted a double-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and three assists while Liatu King added 14 points and nine boards in the loss. Rita Igbokwe had a solid game with six points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in 28 minutes of work.
As a team, Pitt outrebounded the Seminoles 45-31 while also shooting 40.7% from the floor and holding FSU to just 35.6% shooting. The difference in the game came from behind the arc as the Seminoles netted six three-pointers while Pitt went 0-for-5 in the loss.

NEXT UP

If the Panthers win on Wednesday, they will advance to the Second Round and take on No. 7 Miami on Thursday at 6:00 pm inside the Greensboro Coliseum.

#H2P | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram