Pitt
2-5,0-0ACC
Akron
2-3,0-0MAC
Panthers Drop Heartbreaker In Overtime To Akron, 75-72
11/25/2023 4:09:00 PM | Women's Basketball
DAYTONA BEACH, FL – The Pitt women's basketball team (2-5, 0-0 ACC) dropped a heartbreaker in overtime on Saturday afternoon at the Daytona Beach Classic to the Akron Zips, 75-72. Liatu King led the way for Pitt with 25 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks in the loss.
King continued her dominant play for the Panthers as she notched her fifth double-double in the first seven games with a game-high 25 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks across 43 minutes of work. She capped her third straight 20-point effort going 11-for-19 from the floor and 3-for-3 from the charity stripe.
Aislin Malcolm had a strong game in the loss as she netted 15 points and two assists while going 5-for-7 from the floor and 3-for-3 from behind the arc. Aaryn Battle finished off her game with nine points, three rebounds, three assists and two blocks while Marley Washenitz finished with three points, seven rebounds and six assists.
For the game, Pitt shot 50.0% from the floor while the Zips shot 46.0%. Pitt once again won the rebounding battle 37-26 while outscoring the Zips 38-30 in the paint and 16-10 in second chance points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
King started the game with back-to-back buckets before Malcolm scored the next four as Pitt earned the early 8-5 lead over the Zips. Out of the media timeout, Bella Perkins drilled a triple and Jala Jordan finished off a fast break layup to give Pitt the 17-11 lead through 10 minutes.
Jordan opened the second quarter with a finish through traffic after a great feed by Perkins and Aaryn Battle made back-to-back jumpers to give the Panthers their biggest lead of the half, 25-15, just over three minutes into the quarter. The Zips battled back and took the one-point lead, 30-29, into the locker room as they drained a triple right before the buzzer. King led the Panthers with eight points and seven rebounds in the first half.
King opened the third with a layup and free throw and the Panthers went on a 7-0 run capped by a Malcolm triple and Battle steal and layup to take the 41-34 lead at the media timeout midway through the third. The Panthers took the 50-38 lead into the final quarter as King and Jordan each made layups in the final minute.
The Panthers pushed their lead out to 15, 55-40, early in the fourth quarter as Malcolm drilled a corner three. The Zips however, responded with a 16-4 run to make it 59-56 in favor of the Panthers with just over two minutes to go in the fourth. Rapuluchi Ayodele finished off a layup after a Malcolm feed to make it 61-56 but the Zips battled back once again and made it 61-59 after a triple. Washenitz connected on one free throw and the Zips made a layup with nine seconds to go. The Panthers turned the ball over with .3 seconds to play and the Zips drew a foul on the ensuing inbound play and made one free throw to send the game to overtime.
Gabby Hutcherson had a strong start to overtime for Pitt as she made a layup and three-pointer to give the Panthers the 69-68 lead. The Zips responded with a couple layups and King made two free throws to tie the game, 72-72, with 38 seconds to play. The Zips earned another trip to the line with 18 seconds to play and made on free throw to take the 73-72 lead. On the ensuing inbound play, Washenitz missed a contested layup and the Zips grabbed the board and made a pair of free throws to seal the 75-72 win.
GAME NOTES
- With the loss, Pitt falls to 3-1 against Akron in the all-time series including a 0-1 mark in neutral site games.
- Pitt is now 29-16 all-time against current members of the Mid-American Conference.
- King finished off her fifth double-double of the season and her third straight game scoring 20+ points in the loss
- Malcolm netted her third straight game in double figures as she had 15 points in the loss
- Washenitz snagged a career-high seven rebounds (four offensive) in the loss
UP NEXT
- Pitt returns home for a non-conference game on Wednesday, Nov. 29 as they host Saint Francis (PA) at the Petersen Events Center at 7:00 pm. Wednesday's game will air on ACC Network Extra.
