March 8, 2008

Box Score

HARTFORD, Conn. - Marcedes Walker scored 20 points as No. 5 seed Pittsburgh (21-9) opened the BIG EAST Championship Saturday with a 69-63 win over No. 12 seed Villanova (15-15) at the XL Center.

Xenia Stewart added 18 for the Panthers, who will play No. 4 seed Notre Dame on Sunday. Junior forward Laura Kurz (Lower Gwynedd, Pa.) had a game-high 23 points for Villanova.

The fifth-seeded Panthers led 41-22 just over a minute into the second half and appeared on their way to a rout, but Villanova made a run.

The Wildcats were able to find Kurz several times cutting to the basket from the high post, and trailed by just four when she made a 3-point play late.

Walker hit her first four shots as Pitt jumped out early 17-10. The Panthers used an 11-0 run to build a 30-15 lead and led 37-22 at the half.

Senior forward Stacie Witman (Plymouth Meeting, Pa.) had 10 points, nine rebounds and seven assists and junior forward Lisa Karcic (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) chipped in 10 points as well.

Witman's nine rebounds were a game high and her seven assists matched sophomore guard Maria Getty (Centerville, Ohio) for a game-high total. Getty also scored eight points for the Wildcats, who registered assists on 16-of-24 made field goals and were outrebounded just 29-27 by a strong interior Pittsburgh team.

The loss marked the first time in the last 13 appearances Villanova has made at the BIG EAST Championship that it did not advance at least to the quarterfinals. This also was just the second time in the team's last 13 tournament appearances that it did not win its first game.

The 23 points scored by Kurz gave her 10 games this season with at least 20 points scored, a team best total. The two three-pointers made in the game by the Wildcats were a season low for a team that leads the nation in made three-point field goals per game with more than 10.0 per outing. Villanova is the first team in NCAA history to average more than 10.0 three-point field goals per game.