Pitt
7-17,1-10ACC
Florida State
17-7,8-4ACC
Second Half Surge Not Enough, Pitt Falls to Florida State 76-60
2/8/2024 10:17:00 PM | Women's Basketball
PITTSBURGH – Despite one of the best scoring quarters in Panthers history, the Pitt women's basketball team (7-17, 1-10 ACC) could not complete the comeback as they lost to Florida State 76-60 Thursday night at the Petersen Events Center. Prior to the game, King was honored with a game ball for becoming the 21st member of the Pitt 1,000 point club.
Liatu King put on a strong performance, scoring a game-high 21 points and grabbing 15 rebounds for her 14th double-double of the season. It marked her 10th game this season with 20+ points while fellow forward Jala Jordan had her second straight double-double as she finished her game with 14 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in the loss.
The highlight of the game for Pitt came in the third quarter, as the Panthers outscored the Seminoles 29-18 to produce one of their highest scoring quarters in program history. In the frame, guard Aislin Malcolm scored 10 points while going perfect from the floor and King scored eight points to go with seven rebounds. The team worked to erase a 25-point deficit and brought the game to as close as five before being unable to finish the comeback.
Pitt's forwards shined, as the team scored 40 of its 60 points in the paint and outrebounded Florida State 44-38. The Panthers shot 37.1% from the field, 16.7% from behind the arc, and 83.3% from the free-throw line. Pitt also grabbed 15 offensive rebounds, had six team blocks, and five team steals.
Malcolm opened scoring for the Panthers in the first quarter with a jumpshot, but Pitt trailed Florida State 8-2 within the first few minutes of the contest. The Panthers shot 4-18 in the frame and got scoring production from King and Marley Washenitz. Both Bella Perkins and Washenitz drew charges in the first 10 minutes, which for Washenitz marks her 25th drawn charge in 24 games. The Panthers trailed the Seminoles 17-8 going into the second quarter.
In the second frame, Jordan led the Panthers as she notched seven points and four rebounds. Pitt played strong inside basketball, scoring all of its field goals in the paint in the quarter. The Panthers also grabbed five offensive rebounds in the second but trailed 42-19 heading into halftime break.
Pitt came out flying in the third quarter as Jordan continued to work inside, opening scoring in the quarter with a turnaround floater. Aaryn Battle hit a transition layup off an assist from Washenitz to force a Seminole timeout with 7:25 left in the frame. Battle sunk a three-pointer out of the timeout, which was followed by a Malcolm jumper to set the Panthers on a 13-0 run and close the gap to just 11 points, 45-34 with 5:43 to play in the quarter. After a triple by the Seminoles, Pitt responded with eight straight, four from King and four from Malcolm, to cut their deficit to just five, 50-45, with 2:46 left in the quarter. The Seminoles came right back and closed the quarter on a 10-3 run which was capped by a controversial layup from Ta'Niya Latson that looked like a possible charge. Pitt trailed FSU 60-48 heading into the fourth after posting a season-best 29 points in the third quarter.
Pitt couldn't get any closer than 10 in the final frame as they were defeated on their home floor, 76-60 on Thursday night.
Game notes
- King earned her 14th double-double and 10th 20 point game of the season as she netted 21 points and 15 rebounds
- King now has nine games this season with at least 14 rebounds, the second most in the NCAA behind Cameron Brink (Stanford)
- Jordan earned her third double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high 13 rebounds, her second in a row
- Washenitz drew her 25th charge in 24 games
- The Panthers 29 points in the third quarter are a season-high and mark the 10th most ever scored in a single quarter in program history
What's Next
- Pitt plays host to #3 NC State in its 17th annual Pink The Pete game to raise breast cancer awareness on Sunday, February 11th
- Tipoff is set for 12 PM and can be streamed on ACC Network Extra
