Pitt
8-22,2-15ACC
Miami
18-10,8-9ACC
Panthers Fall At Miami Thursday, 62-44
2/29/2024 8:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball
CORAL GABLES, FL – The Pitt women's basketball team (8-22, 2-15 ACC) shot just 29.0% from the floor Thursday night as they fell on the road to the Miami Hurricanes, 62-44.
Liatu King led the way in scoring for Pitt once again Thursday as she finished off her 17th double-double of the season with 18 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and four steals. Rapuluchi Ayodele had a strong game on the glass as she grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds to go along with six points and two steals while Bella Perkins came off the bench and scored eight points in the loss.
As a team, Pitt shot just 29.0% from the floor while connecting on just three triple. The Hurricanes shot 41.8% from the floor while draining seven triples in the win. Pitt held the 43-32 lead in rebounds while the Hurricanes turned 22 Pitt turnovers into 18 points.
How It Happened
After the Hurricanes scored the first four points of the game, King came right back with four straight to tie the game as she finished off a reverse layup in traffic. The Hurricanes regained the 10-4 lead but Ayodele scored four straight points for the Panthers and King ended the quarter with a layup to send it to the second with Pitt trailing by two, 12-10.
Miami opened the second quarter with nine straight points to force the Panthers into a timeout, trailing 21-10 early in the quarter. Out of the timeout, Perkins sank a triple and Marley Washenitz finished off a layup to bring Pitt within 25-15 late in the quarter. The Hurricanes closed out the first half with five straight to take the 30-15 lead into the locker room as Pitt turned it over 14 times in the half.
A King layup and Aislin Malcolm triple opened the scoring in the third for the Panthers but the Hurricanes came right back with a jumper to push their lead back to 15, 37-22. After the media timeout, Pitt scored six straight as Ayodele finished a layup and King made back-to-back buckets to cut the Pitt deficit to nine, 39-30, with two minutes to go in the quarter. Raeven Boswell came off the bench and provided Pitt with a big spark as she netted back-to-back layups and King finished off a layup before the buzzer to make the score 43-36 at the end of the third.
Gabby Hutcherson opened the fourth with an offensive rebound and layup to cut the Miami lead to eight, 46-38, but the Panthers weren't able to get any closer down the stretch of the fourth. The Hurricanes closed the game on a 16-6 run to earn the 62-44 home victory.
Game Notes
- King finished with a team-high 18 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and four steals in the loss. She has now scored in double figures in 28 of 30 games and 15+ in 24 games this season
- The 18-point and 11-rebound game gives King 17 double-doubles on the season, the most by a Pitt player in over 30 seasons
- Ayodele grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds in the loss which gives her nine games this season with 10+ boards
What's Next
- The Panthers close out their regular season at home Sunday, Mar. 3 as they welcome the Boston College Eagles to the Petersen Events Center for a 12:00 pm tip on ACC Network.
- Sunday's game will be Senior Day for four Panthers (Jala Jordan, Rapuluchi Ayodele, Gabby Hutcherson, Liatu King)
