Women's Hoops Cruises By Seton Hall, 84-56

2/16/2000

Freshman Brooke Stewart scores 24 points to help lead Panthers.

PITTSBURGH - Freshman guard Brooke Stewart's 24 points propelled the Pittsburgh women's basketball team past visiting Seton Hall, 84-56, tonight at Fitzgerald Field House.

The 28-point victory marked Pittsburgh's third-largest margin of victory over a Big East Conference opponent since the Panthers joined the league in 1982-83.

Stewart's (North Versailles, Pa./East Allegheny) 24 points came on 7-of-8 shooting overall, including 6-of-7 from 3-point range. She also added a game-high five assists to her effort. Joining Stewart in double-figures was junior guard Monique Toney (Yorba Linda, Calif./Cerritos Valley Christian) with 16 points and freshman forward Mandy Wittenmyer (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) who had 12.

Pittsburgh took control of the game in the contest's initial minutes and jumped to a 22-6 lead at the 10:07 mark. Seton Hall brought the score within 12 points (24-12) with 7:48 remaining but could draw no closer. The Panthers widened their lead to as much as 24 points in the half and went into intermission ahead, 38-19.

The Panthers shot an impressive 52 percent (26-of-50) overall which included a season-high 69.2 percent (9-of-13) from behind the arc. Pittsburgh also connected on 23-of-26 free throws for a season-high 88.5 percent. Seton Hall, in contrast, was 23-of-58 (39.7 percent) overall from the field, and 2-of-5 (40 percent) from 3-point range.

The victory marks Pittsburgh's 14th of the season and improves its record to 14-9 overall and 5-7 in Big East play. Seton Hall falls to 8-14 overall and 2-10 in the Big East.

Pittsburgh will return to action Saturday, Feb. 19, when it hosts 19th-ranked Boston College at Fitzgerald Field House. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.