East Carolina University
Pittsburgh
Pirates Fall In Cancun To Pittsburgh
December 19, 2006 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 19, 2006
No. 22 Pitt 70, East Carolina 53 (PDF) 
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CANCUN, MEXICO- Jessica Slack's 17 points were not enough as 22nd ranked Pittsburgh rallied for the 70-53 win in the first day of the 2006 Caribbean Classic at the Moon Palace Resort in Cancun, Mexico. With the win, Pitt remains unbeaten at 11-0 while ECU falls to 4-7 on the year.
Pitt jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead before East Carolina got on the board on Slack's first three-pointer of the game at the 18:03 mark. After a Nicole Days free throw cut the lead to one, at 7-6, but the Panthers put together an 8-0 run to extend their lead to nine, 15-6 with 14:45 to play in the half. The Lady Pirates cut Pitt's lead to five, 24-19, on back to back baskets by Slack and LaCoya Terry. The Panthers bounced back, scoring four unanswered points and extending their lead to nine, at 28-19 with 7:34 to play. East Carolina answered, going on a 7-2 run, cutting the lead to four, 30-26 with under five minutes remaining in the half. The Lady Pirates put together another run at the end of the half, sparked by back to back baskets by Gabriela Husarova, who got her second start of the season against the Panthers. ECU's 7-0 run made the halftime margin 40-34 in favor of the Panthers.
Slack and Xenia Stewart were the top scorers at the break, with 12 a piece. Nine of Slack's 12 points came from behind the three-point line. Marcedes Walker added 11 points for the Panthers at the half.
The Panthers scored first in the second half, on a basket by Shavonte Zellous, extending their lead to eight, 42-34. Pitt extended its lead on an 11-2 run over the next three minutes, putting them up 53-38 with 14:14 to play in the contest. Cherie Mills' five straight points pulled the Lady Pirates to within 10 with 12:15 to play. Slack's fourth trey of the contest, at the 5:50 mark, cut the Pitt lead to seven, 58-51. Pitt held the Lady Pirates scoreless over the next five and a half minutes, going on a 12-0 run to give them a 70-51 lead. Terry scored with 13 second to play, making the final margin 70-53.
Zellous tallied a game-high 22 points, including 8-for-12 from the charity stripe. Stewart added 21 while Walker finished with 15 points and 15 rebounds for the double-double. Slack led the Lady Pirates with 17 points, tying her season-high. Mills added 12 points and seven rebounds. The Lady Pirates were held to 32.7 percent shooting from the field while Pitt shot 46.6 percent.
East Carolina will take on Detroit on Wednesday, Dec. 20 at the Moon Palace Resort. Tip-off from Cancun is set for 9:30 p.m.
