Villanova used a hot-shooting first half to take advantage of the game. After Pittsburgh’s Allisha Morris (Hampton, Va./Hampton) hit a 3-pointer at the 14:13 mark of the half to knot the score at 13-13, the Wildcats’ Jennifer Hilgenberg and Betsy McManus connected on back-to-back treys to give them a 19-13 lead. The advantage was stretched to 13 points (35-22) on a Liad Suez drive to the basket before Morris ended a seven-minute scoring draught for Pittsburgh with another 3-pointer with 11 seconds remaining in the frame.

For the half, Villanova hit 56 percent (14 of 25) from the field and 44 percent (4 of 9) from behind the 3-point arc. The Panthers shot just 29 percent (9 of 31) in the half as they trailed 35-25 at intermission.

The Wildcats’ hot shooting night continued in the second half as they buried 58 percent (14 of 24) of their field goals. Pittsburgh closed the gap to seven points (39-32) at the 18:08 mark, but Villanova made three consecutive 3-pointers as the lead was built to 14 points. The Wildcats eventually shot the lead up to 23 points before going away with the 21-point victory.

Marcedes Walker (Philadelphia, Pa./University City) led the Panthers with 14 points while Vika Sholokhova (St. Petersburg, Russia/Sacred Heart) pitched with 11 points. Morris finished with eight points and a team-high six rebounds.

Suez made 8-of-12 shots from the field, including 4-of-5 3-pointers, to lead all scorers with 22 points for Villanova. Kate Dessart Mager added 15 points.

For the game, Pittsburgh hit 36 percent (19 of 53) from the field while the Wildcats finished 57 percent (28 of 49).

Pittsburgh hosts No. 6/7 Notre Dame on Saturday afternoon at the Petersen Events Center. The game marks the third annual "Pack the Petersen" event as all tickets are just $1. Tickets are available by calling (412) 648-PITT.

NOTES: Pittsburgh was outrebounded 31-28...Villanova Head Coach Harry Perretta won his 500th career game...Pittsburgh was 4 of 13 (31 percent) from 3-point range to the Wildcats’ 57 percent (8 of 14)...the Panthers have lost six straight in the series history against Villanova.