Pittsburgh Panthers WBB Team Completes Record-Tying Comeback Against SMU

While you were busy taking in all the NFL playoff action on Sunday, the Pittsburgh Panthers women’s basketball team was busy putting together a record-tying comeback.

The Panthers were hosting the SMU Mustangs in what was supposed to be a relatively non-newsworthy matchup between two mid-tier teams. That theory was only enforced when the Mustangs took a 46-14 lead late in the second quarter and went into halftime with a 49-18 lead.

Head coach Tori Verdi’s halftime message was simple: keep fighting. I mean, what else is he going to say?

"I came in at halftime and said, ‘I don’t have any magic words and I don’t have any magic plays,’" Verdi said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We were just getting outworked, we were getting outplayed. It was a positive, spirited conversation. I challenged them. We talked about pride, having a sense of pride. And then essentially I gave them a roadmap to get us back into the game."

Someone should hang that map in the Pittsburgh Hall of Fame, because it led to an epic comeback win.

The Panthers proceeded to go on an a 54-10 extended run for the rest of the game, even outscoring the Mustangs 28-0 (!!!) in the third quarter. When the final buzzer sounded, the Panthers had secured a 72-59 win that tied for longest comeback at that level of the sport.

That in itself is a wild story, but when you look at some of the numbers behind the comeback, it gets crazier. According to the Associated Press: 

• SMU shot 2 for 28 (7%) in the second half.
• Pittsburgh started 0 for 10 and 2 for 20 from the field.
• SMU was 10 for 18 from the field in the game’s first 9 minutes. The Mustangs were 5 for 44 from the field in the final 31 minutes.
• SMU missed its final 21 shots from 2-point range. The Mustangs didn’t have a 2-point make in the final three quarters; all five of their made baskets in the final three quarters were from beyond the 3-point arc.
• Pitt made 16 of its final 24 shots.
• The only Mustangs player with a field goal in the second half was Zanai Jones; she was 2 for 10 in that span and her teammates combined to shoot 0 for 18 in the final two quarters.

Looks like the Madness of March came a little bit early this year!

"Coach said at halftime, ‘We just need one person to ignite us. One play to ignite us,’" guard Marley Washenitz said.

They didn’t just get a play that sparked a game, they got a win that could turn around their season.