Pitt competed with No. 16 Duke on the road Thursday night from the opening tip-off to the sounding of the final buzzer. While they played great defense, their poor shooting doomed them in a 53-44 loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
The Panthers (7-15 overall, 0-11 ACC) drop their 10th straight game with their last win coming on Dec. 21 against North Alabama at home. This loss to the Blue Devils (19-3 overall, 9-2 ACC) for the Panthers is the 15th in a row in the series, as the Blue Devils are 15-0 all-time.
This defeat also pushes the Panthers’ conference losing streak to 21 games, which started on Jan. 30, 2022, and also the 48th consecutive loss to a ranked team since March 2015.
Both teams found themselves tied early on in the first quarter, before Duke finished the period on an 8-2 run to take a 15-9 lead. Pitt shot 4-for-18 from the floor in the first quarter and went six minutes without any points throughout the back end of the period.
Neither team played great offensively in the second quarter, as both teams shot 33.3% from the floor. The Panthers outscored the Blue Devils, 11-10, and cut the lead to just five points, 25-20, at halftime.
Duke looked to break away in the third quarter, with an early 7-1 run to put themselves up double digits. Pitt didn’t fall apart like they have done so often in the third quarter this season and outscored Duke 11-4 to make it a four-point ballgame, 36-32, going into the fourth quarter.
The Panthers continued to shoot terribly in the fourth quarter, as they failed to make a basket until junior forward Gabby Hutcherson made a 3-pointer with 3:26 remaining. The Blue Devils didn’t necessarily shoot great either, but they made enough buckets and foul shots to increase their lead out of reach for the Panthers and somewhat easily took the win in the end.
Pitt shot 30.9% and only made 17 field goals in the loss against Duke, their second worst field goal percentage and second least made field goals in a game this season, respectively. They also shot 4-for-7 from the foul line, making it the least made foul shots and the least attempted foul shots in a game this season, respectively.
Pitt’s 44 total points is also the second least amount of pointsn a game this season. The 74-37 blowout loss to Florida State on Jan. 22 ranks first for the worst offensive output in most categories in a game in 2022-23 for Pitt.
The Panthers also only got seven offensive rebounds despite the numerous amount of misses, the least in a game for them this season. Their 28 combined rebounds are also the third least in a game this season as well.
Pitt did manage to play well defensively. keeping them in the game and putting Duke out of rhythm offensively. They made 12 steals, tied for the third most in a game this season for Pitt, and they made four blocks as well.
The Blue Devils put on a good defensive performance as they grabbed 45 rebounds, made eight blocks and 12 steals to keep the Panthers from playing solid offensively.
Senior guard Emy Hayford scored a season high 12 points against Duke, making five of her seven shots from the field. She finished as the only Pitt player in double-digits scoring against Duke, ironically, as she hadn’t scored in double digits all season prior.
Pitt hosts Virginia at home on Sunday, Feb. 5 in the annual Pink the Pete game, where the program honors those who have fought against breast cancer.
