ALBUQUERQUE — Pitt survived in The Pit.
Shavonte Zellous scored 21 points, Sophronia Sallard had 15 and Mallorie Winn hit a huge 3-pointer with 2:27 remaining to help Pittsburgh beat Wyoming 63-58 on Saturday in the NCAA’s first round.
Winn’s shot put Pittsburgh (23-10) ahead for good in a seesaw contest that featured 12 ties and 10 lead changes.
“I was rushing my shots,” said Winn, who missed her first four 3-point attempts. “I felt that was the first good one I got off. I think people know I’m a 3-point shooter, so they know not to leave me open.”
The No. 6-seeded Panthers (23-10) held on despite a sluggish performance by standout center Marcedes Walker, who scored 11 of her 13 points in the second half but was slowed by foul trouble.
“I was pretty frustrated,” Walker said. “But I knew my team was playing well, so I didn’t show any emotion. It’s not just about me.”
Justyna Podziemska led the No. 11-seeded Cowgirls (24-7) with a season-high 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting, while Jodi Bolerjack and Hanna Zavecz each scored 10.
But Wyoming, making its first NCAA Tournament appearance, just couldn’t take over.
Podziemska put the Cowgirls ahead 54-53 on a 3-pointer with 4:03 remaining, but Winn broke free at the other end and hit from the left corner.
From there, Pitt tightened the defense and held the Cowgirls without a field goal for 3 1/2 minutes down the stretch. Walker, Winn and Zellous made 5-of-6 free throws in the closing minutes.
“We played very confidently and like we had nothing to lose,” Zavecz said. “They’re a very talented team. You could tell they’ve been in situations like that before. They made a big play and we couldn’t respond.”
WYOMING (24-7)
Zavecz 3-10 4-4 10, Podziemska 8-17 2-2 23, Vanderjagt 1-2 0-0 3, J.Bolerjack 4-11 0-0 10, Sisk 1-4 2-2 4, Vandiver 1-2 0-2 2, Mordecai 0-0 0-0 0, McGuffey 1-3 2-2 4, Dissen 1-1 0-0 2, Carlson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-50 10-12 58.
PITTSBURGH (23-10)
Sallard 7-8 0-0 15, Stewart 1-4 0-0 2, Walker 4-8 5-6 13, Winn 1-6 4-4 7, Zellous 7-19 7-8 21, Harrison 1-4 0-2 2, Cole 0-0 0-0 0, Scott 1-2 1-3 3. Totals 22-51 17-23 63.
Halftime — Tied 28-28. 3-point goals — UW 8-27 (Podziemska 5-12, J.Bolerjack 2-8, Vanderjagt 1-1, McGuffey 0-1, Sisk 0-2, Zavecz 0-3), PU 2-9 (Sallard 1-1, Winn 1-5, Stewart 0-1, Harrison 0-2). Fouled Out — Sisk, Zavecz. Rebounds — UW 27 (Zavecz 5), PU 35 (Walker 6). Assists — UW 14 (J.Bolerjack 4), PU 13 (Sallard, Walker, Winn 3). Total fouls — UW 19, PU 12. A — 6,097.
