Bugg's Career Night Lifts Pitt Past Central Connecticut State

Monday, November 11

Pittsburgh, Pa.

7:00 PM

Pitt

1-1,0-0ACC

Central Connecticut State University

0-2,0-0NEC

Central Conn. St.

Pittsburgh

Photo by: Alex Mowrey/Pitt Athletics

Bugg's Career Night Lifts Pitt Past Central Connecticut State

11/11/2019 11:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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PITTSBURGH – Behind a career-high 26 points from Aysia Bugg, the University of Pittsburgh women's basketball team (1-1, 0-0 ACC) overcame a 19-point first half deficit to secure their first win of the season, downing Central Connecticut State 81-73 in front of the home fans at the Petersen Events Center. The 19-point deficit is the largest deficit the Panthers have overcome in a game since joining the ACC in 2013-14.

It was a tale of two halves for the Panthers on Monday night inside the Petersen Events Center as they completely dominated the Blue Devils in the second half to secure the win. Pitt outscored the visitors 49-24 in the second half after Central Connecticut State was able to knock down 10 three-pointers in the first half.

Pitt had four players score in double figures, led by Aysia Bugg who had a career night for the Panthers in the win netting a career-high 26 points and adding four assists and two steals across 37 minutes of work. The sixth-year guard finished off her strong performance going 6-for-12 from behind the arc, a career-high for three-pointers made in a game. Freshman Amber Brown posted her first career double-double, finishing her night with 13 points and 10 rebounds while Dayshanette Harris scored 11 and Cara Judkins finished with 10 points in the win.

After a Gabbie Green layup gave Pitt the early 6-5 edge, the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils shot lights out from the floor in the opening quarter as they went on a 15-2 run to take the 20-8 lead. Bugg knocked down a triple to get Pitt within nine but the Blue Devils closed out the opening quarter with the 24-13 lead.

The Blue Devils didn't slow down in the second quarter as they were able to knock down five three-pointers in the quarter to take the 49-32 lead into the locker room at halftime. Across the first 20 minutes, the visitors went 10-for-15 from three-point range and shot 58.1% overall.

The Panthers came storming out of the locker room in the third quarter on Monday night as it was their defense that led the charge. After a jumper gave CCSU the 51-32 lead, the Panthers forced four straight turnovers and went on a 13-2 run that was capped by a Harris step back triple. Brown tied the game up, 56-56, late in the quarter with a fast break layup but the visitors took the lead back and went to the fourth leading, 59-57. Pitt forced nine Central Connecticut State turnovers in the third quarter which led to 17 points.

Pitt put together another strong 10 minutes in the fourth as they were able to outscore the Blue Devils 24-14 in the quarter. After trading some buckets early in the quarter, the Panthers began to pull away midway through the final frame as Jahsyni Knight finished off a fast break layup and free throw to give Pitt the 71-65 lead. The Panthers defense continued to force tough shots and they connected on their free throws down the stretch of the quarter to collect the 81-73 home opening win.

As a team, the Panthers forced 21 Central Connecticut State turnovers and they turned those into 29 points off of turnovers in the win. Pitt was also able to get out in transition in the second half and outscored the Blue Devils 23-4 in the fast break. The Panthers also held the 34-16 edge in paint scoring while shooting 44.8% from the floor in the home opening win.

The Blue Devils were led offensively by Ashley Berube who netted 18 points and five rebounds while three others scored 12 points for the visitors in the loss.

UP NEXT

The Panthers return home on Saturday afternoon as they welcome the Georgetown Hoyas for a 2:00 pm tip.
Pitt will then play host to Fairleigh Dickinson on Tuesday, Nov. 19 at 11:00 am and Duquesne on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 2:00 pm.

PITT NOTES
Team

With the win, Pitt improves to 2-0 all-time against the Blue Devils and 52-3 all-time against NEC opponents.
Pitt has won four of their last five home openers inside the Petersen Events Center.
The 19-point first half deficit is the largest deficit the Panthers have overcome in a win since joining the ACC in 2013-14.
Pitt forced 21 Central Connecticut State turnovers and notched 12 steals in the win. Pitt now has two games this season with 10+ steals.
The 49-point second half for the Panthers is the most in a half since putting up 53 points last season against North Carolina.
Pitt had a season-high four players score in double figures in the win.

Aysia Bugg

Bugg finished off her career night with a career-high 26 points, four assists, two steals and two rebounds across 37 minutes.
She finished off her night going 7-for-19 from the floor while connecting on a career-high six three-points, going 6-for-12 from behind the arc.
Bugg finished the game with a team-high four assists and has now led the team in assists in 42 career games.
She logged a game-high 37 minutes, playing in 30+ minutes for the 45^th time in her career.
The graduate student is just 244 points shy of becoming the 20^th member of the Panthers 1,000 point club.
She is also just 24 assists away from 10th place on the Panthers all-time assists charts as she has 316 career helpers.

Amber Brown

Brown posted a huge game in the win as she netted a career-high 13 points, 10 rebounds and a steal across 30 minutes of work.
The double-double marked the first this season by a Panther after Pitt only posted three double-doubles a season ago.
Brown went 5-for-7 from the floor and 3-for-4 from the charity stripe in the win.
She was a beast on the glass all game long as she snagged seven defensive boards and three offensive rebounds.

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