Pitt
7-19,1-12ACC
North Carolina
16-9,8-5ACC
Panthers Hang Tough; Fall at North Carolina Thursday, 75-62
2/15/2024 8:16:00 PM | Women's Basketball
CHAPEL HILL, NC – The Pitt women's basketball team (7-19, 1-12 ACC) battled for 40 minutes but fell late to the North Carolina Tar Heels Thursday night at Carmichael Arena by the score of 75-62.
Liatu King once again led the Panthers as she notched her 15th double-double of the season with 16 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Bella Perkins had a strong game off the bench as she netted 16 points, three rebounds and two assists while making four three-pointers. Aaryn Battle finished her game with 11 points in 23 minutes of work while going 4-for-7 from the floor.
As a team, Pitt shot 48.1% from the floor and 58.3% from behind the arc while the Tar Heels shot 43.6% from the floor in the win. The Rebounding battle was tied, 29-29, while UNC turned 24 Pitt turnovers into 24 points.
The Panthers had a quick start offensively as Battle and Aislin Malcolm buried back-to-back jumpers to make it 4-0 less than a minute in. Pitt went cold over the next six minutes as the Tar Heels scored the next nine points to take the 9-4 lead into the final two minutes. King netted a jumper to make it 9-6 in favor of the Tar Heels at the end of the first quarter. The Pitt defense held UNC to just 18.8% shooting in the opening quarter.
The Tar Heels opened the second with two straight buckets to push their lead to seven, 13-6, just over a minute into action. The Panthers came right back with a 12-3 run which was sparked by triples from Gabby Hutcherson and Perkins to give Pitt the 18-16 lead with just over three minutes to play in the half. After UNC regained the 25-23 lead, Battle drained back-to-back triples to give the Panthers the 29-27 lead heading into the locker room at halftime.
The Tar Heels opened the third quarter hot from behind the arc as they connected on four triples to push their lead out to 44-33 just over four minutes into the quarter and forcing Pitt to take a timeout. The Panthers got right back in the game out of the timeout as Perkins took over offensively with a triple and back-to-back layups to tie the game, 46-46, with three minutes to play in the third. King made a pair of free throws down the stretch as the Panthers entered the fourth trailing 51-48.
Malcolm opened the fourth with a jumper to make it 51-50 in favor of the Tar Heels but the home team responded with five straight. After a Perkins triple and Battle layup and free throw, Pitt trailed 60-56 midway through the fourth but they weren't able to get any closer down the stretch. The Tar Heels made their free throws down the final two minutes of the game to earn the 75-62 home victory.
Game Notes
- With the loss, Pitt falls to 6-8 all-time against the Tar Heels including a 1-5 mark in Carmichael Arena. UNC has won five straight in the series against the Panthers
- King finished off her night with 16 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and two steals. It marks her 24th game scoring in double figures through the first 26 games of the season
- King now has collected 15 double-doubles on the season
- The 14-rebound effort gives King 10 games this season with at least 14 rebounds and 16 with double digit boards
- Perkins finished with 16 points, three rebounds and two assists for her eighth game in double figures this season
- Battle netted 11 points in the loss which marks her second straight game in double figures and fifth overall this season
What's Next
- Pitt stays on the road Sunday, February 18 as they travel to Clemson to take on the Tigers at 12:00 pm. Sunday's game will air on ACC Network Extra.
