Pitt Ready For ACC Tournament First Round Matchup Against Boston College

PITTSBURGH – The Pitt women's basketball team (5-12, 3-11 ACC) will look to recreate some of the magic they had last season in the first round of the ACC Tournament as they play #13 seed Boston College on Wednesday afternoon at the Greensboro Coliseum. The Panthers and Eagles tip at 2:00 pm on RSN (AT&T SPortsNet Pittsburgh) with a meeting with #5 Syracuse in the second round on the line.

HOW TO FOLLOW

Wednesday's game will be aired live on RSN (AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh) with Tom Werme and LaChina Robinson on the call. Tune in by clicking HERE.
You can also listen to the game on 93.7 FM HD 3 radio as the voice of Pitt women's basketball, Josh Rowntree, will have the call starting at 1:45 pm with the pregame show. The radio call can be heard by clicking HERE.
Live stats of the game can be found 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 BOSTON COLLEGE

Wednesday's meeting will be the 50th of all-time between the two programs with Boston College owning the 30-19 lead in the series.
The Panthers are 2-0 all-time against the Eagles in neutral site games.
Pitt downed Boston College 83-80 earlier this year in Boston to end a four-game winning streak in the series for the Eagles.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES

The Boston College Eagles closed out their regular season with a 6-11 overall record and a 2-11 ACC mark. The Eagles dropped their last game to Syracuse 92-75 on Thursday night.
The Eagles are being led offensively by Taylor Soule who ranks fifth in the ACC in scoring (16.6 ppg) while also leading the team in rebounding (7.1 rpg). She is shooting 44.7% from the floor while connecting on 69 free throws on the year.
Makayla Dickens ranks second on the team in scoring (12.6 ppg) while also adding 3.9 rpg and 2.4 apg. She has also connected on a team-high 47 triples while shooting 45.2% from deep on the year.
Cameron Swartz has been solid for the Eagles as she is averaging 12.4 ppg and 4.9 rpg.
As a team, Boston College is averaging 68.7 ppg while allowing 71.9 ppg.

LAST TIME OUT – AT GEORGIA TECH

The Panthers won almost every statistical category in their regular season finale but fell to the Yellow Jackets 65-60 on Sunday.
The Panthers shot 40% from the floor and grabbed 41 rebounds but the Yellow Jackets turned 15 Pitt turnovers into 16 points which proved to be the difference.
Junior Jayla Everett had her best game as a Panther in the loss as she netted a season-high 25 points and three steals while going 8-for-15 from the floor and 3-for-8 from behind the arc.
Cynthia Ezeja had the best game of her career on the glass as she snagged a career-high 13 rebounds including five offensive boards in the loss.

STORYLINES

As announced on Tuesday morning, junior Jayla Everett was named to the Honorable Mention All-ACC Team by the head coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel. Everett is just the second Panther to earn a spot on an All-ACC Team (Brianna Kiesel, 2015).
A major bright spot for the Panthers so far this season has been their rebounding. The Panthers currently ranks 10th among Power 5 programs in rebounds per game (41.4 rpg). Pitt also ranks 15th in the NCAA and 4th among Power 5 teams (South Carolina, Baylor, UCLA) in offensive rebounds per game (15.8 orpg).

OPENING TIP

#12 Pitt takes on #13 Boston College on Wednesday afternoon in the first round of the ACC Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum. Tip is set for 2pm on RSN (AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh).
The Pitt offense enjoyed their best ACC regular season in program history this year as they averaged 64.5 ppg while also posting two 80+ point games in conference action,tied for the most in a season in program history.
Freshman Sandrine Clesca is making a strong impact for the Panthers over her last three games as she is averaging 26.0 minutes, 8.3 points and 2.3 rebounds while shooting 47.8% from the floor.

PANTHERS IN THE ACC TOURNAMENT

Since joining the ACC during the 2013-14 season, Pitt is 2-7 at the ACC Tournament. The Panthers have never advanced past the second round of the tournament.
Pitt was able to secure their second ACC Tournament win in program history last season as they upset #10 seed Notre Dame in the first round 67-65. Freshman Dayshanette Harris hit the game-winner with 2.7 seconds left to cap her first career double-double as she finished with 20 points and 10 boards in the win.
Pitt earned the #12 seed this season, their highest seeding at the tournament since they were #11 in 2017. The highest seed the Panthers ever earned was the #7 seed in 2015.
Brenna Wise holds the Pitt record for scoring in an ACC Tournament game as she netted 25 points in the 2016 win over North Carolina.

HITTING THE OFFENSIVE GLASS

The Panthers have done a great job over the last two seasons of attacking the offensive glass.
Last time out, Pitt grabbed 12 offensive boards as they have notched at least 10 in 17 of 18 games this year.
Earlier this year, Pitt had a streak of nine straight games with at least 15 offensive rebounds. It marked their first such streak since the 2005-06 season.
Pitt has three games with 20+ offensive rebounds this season, all three of which came in the last eight games.
The Panthers have upped their production on the offensive glass this season as they lead the ACC overall (15.8 orpg) and in ACC games (16.1 orpg).
The Panthers currently rank 15th in the NCAA in offensive rebounds/game (15.8 orpg) and fourth overall among Power 5 programs (South Carolina, Baylor, UCLA).
Since White took over the program in 2018-19, the Panthers are +6.5 offensive rebounds/game as they grabbed just 9.3 offensive boards/game during the 2017-18 season.
In ACC play, Cynthia Ezeja has been a monster on the offensive glass for Pitt as she ranks fourth in the conference grabbing 3.1 offensive rebounds per game.
Pitt is one of three teams in the ACC to have two players who have grabbed at least 44 offensive rebounds on the year (Boston College, Louisville).

MUCH IMPROVED REBOUNDING

One of the biggest points of emphasis for head coach Lance White is rebounding and Pitt has taken that to heart as they are averaging 5.9 rpg more this season (41.4 rpg) than the season before White took over the program (2017-18 - 35.5 rpg).
Pitt ranks 10th among Power 5 conference teams in rebounds/game (41.4 rpg) and 4th in offensive rebounds/game (15.8 orpg).
Pitt has 13 games this season with 40+ rebounds including in seven of the last eight ACC games. Pitt had 15 games with 40+ rebounds a season ago while playing 13 more games.
The Panthers are just 5-42 under White when they lose the battle on the boards including a 1-7 mark this season.

CLESCA MAKES SECOND STRAIGHT START AT THE POINT

Freshman point guard Sandrine Clesca has shown great growth since the beginning of the season and she is being rewarded with more playing time.
In her second career start Sunday, Clesca netted eight points, two rebounds and an assist in 27 minutes of work while going 4-for-9 from the floor.
The Quebec, Canada native has appeared in 10 total games this season including in five straight.
Over her last three games, she is averaging 26.0 minutes, 8.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists.

NEXT UP

The winner of Wednesday's game will move onto the second round and play #5 seed Syracuse at 2:30 pm on Thursday, March 4 at the Greensboro Coliseum.

#H2P | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Pitt Ready For ACC Tournament First Round Matchup Against Boston College

Players Mentioned

Sandrine Clesca

Jayla Everett

Cynthia Ezeja

Dayshanette Harris

Related Videos