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Free throws costly as Pitt falls, 62-60

Wednesday, December 04, 2002

By Paul Zeise, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

The Duquesne women's basketball team beat Pitt, 62-60, last night at the Palumbo Center mostly because the Dukes converted their free throws down the stretch while the Panthers did not.

Pitt trailed for most of the second half before the hot hands of Brooke Stewart, Laine Selwyn and Amy Kunich gave it a 49-48 lead with five minutes to play.

But from there, the Panthers made only 6 of 12 free throws and missed the front ends of two one-and-ones, while the Dukes hit six of their final eight.

"We did not shoot the ball from the free-throw line, period," Pitt Coach Traci Waites said.

"It is disappointing because we spent a half hour today shooting free throws, and we had a chance to win the game from the line and didn't get it done. But hats off to Duquesne. They made the plays they needed to make."

The Panthers made only 8 of 18 free throws (44 percent), while the Dukes made 12 of 18 (66.7 percent).

Despite the troubles at the line, Pitt had several chances to take a lead in the final 20 seconds but couldn't convert.

With 19 seconds remaining and the Panthers trailing, 61-60, Pitt's Haley Harguth was fouled but missed both free throws.

Duquesne's Beth Friday then hit a free throw and missed the second, but there was a scramble for the rebound and a jump ball was called. The possession arrow pointed to Pitt, and the Panthers inbounded the ball to Selwyn.

She drove the length of the floor but missed a tough layup that would have tied the score at the buzzer.

For the Dukes (4-1), who played without injured starting point guard Candace Futrell, it was the fourth victory in five years against the Panthers.

"We had a lot of young kids step up tonight and that's great to see," Dukes Coach Dan Durkin said.

"We have the talent to really do some things, and now I think we're starting to gain some confidence. This was a good win because we had a lot to overcome and I thought Pitt played tough."

Trailing by six points, Duquesne opened the second half by playing a combination of two different zone defenses it hadn't played in the first half.

The move worked as the Dukes were able to force turnovers on the Panthers' first four possessions of the second half and made a 12-2 run to take a 34-30 lead with 14 minutes to play.

Durkin said he made the switch to slow down Pitt's fastbreak.

The Panthers trailed the Dukes, 13-10, with about 11 minutes to play in the first half but went on a 16-2 run in the next seven minutes to take a 26-15 lead.

But Pitt (3-1) couldn't capitalize on the momentum and made a few turnovers, and Duquesne made a 7-0 run to pull within 26-22 with less than a minute to play in the half.

Selwyn, who led all scorers with 22 points, then hit a layup with 14 seconds to play to give Pitt a 28-22 lead at the break.

Stewart finished with 15 while Friday scored 14 and grabbed 14 rebounds.

Paul Zeise can be reached at pzeise@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1720.