Pitt
Louisville
Panthers Fall to Louisville in First Round Action, 79-71
3/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 5, 2010
HARTFORD, Conn. — Brittaney Thomas scored 21 points while three other Panthers reached double figures, but the Panthers could not contain Louisville’s Monique Reid as the 13th-seeded Cardinals knocked off the No. 12 Panthers, 79-71, in first-round action here at the Big East Championship in Hartford, Conn.
Louisville got the best of Pitt for the second straight season. The Cardinals knocked the Panthers out of the championship last year with a 69-63 win in the semifinals.
Chelsea Cole notched her sixth straight double-double, tallying 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. The Big East’s rebounding champion reached doubles figures on the glass for the 16th time this season and sixth straight game. Pepper Wilson finished with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field and added seven rebounds while Jania Sims totaled 10 points.
The Panthers (16-14, 5-11 Big East) jumped out to an 8-2 lead less than two minutes into the game, with baskets from Cole, Thomas, Wilson and Sims. Louisville inched their way back into the game, taking a 17-16 lead following a Gwen Rucker at the 12:02 mark. Reid, who finished the game with 32 points on 12-of-21 shooting, led the UofL charge, scoring six of her 14 first-half points.
Pitt regained the lead, up by as many as seven points with just over five minutes to play before hitting a dry stretch, allowing the Cardinals to knot the game at 36-36 before grabbing a seven-point lead heading into the locker room at 43-36. The 18-4 Louisville run spanned the final five and a half minutes and saw the Panthers connect on just one field goal.
An 11-3 Pitt run midway through the second half brought the score to 56-55 in favor of the Panthers. Six minutes and five lead changes later, the Cardinals grabbed the lead for good following a Keisha Hines jumper.
Louisville ended the game with a 10-2 run over the last four minutes, connecting on 6-of-7 free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
