Wake Forest University
12-6,2-5ACC
Pitt
10-7,1-5ACC
Wake Forest Drops Sunday Contest at Pitt
1/16/2022 4:28:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Sophomore guard Jewel Spear finished the game with her second career double-double, finishing with a game-high 20 points and a game-high 10 rebounds in the defeat.
PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- The Wake Forest women's basketball team dropped a Sunday matinee at Pitt, 65-57.
The Demon Deacons (12-6, 2-5 ACC) now move to 4-2 all-time at the Petersen Events Center against the Panthers (10-7, 1-5 ACC).
Sophomore guard Jewel Spear continued her impressive campaign for the Deacs, ending the night with a game-high 20 points and 10 rebounds. This was the second time this season and in her career Spear finished with a double-double.
Her other double-double came in the non-conference finale against South Carolina State when she scored 25 points to go along with 10 rebounds. This was also her seventh 20-plus point game this season and it tied her ACC high this season.
The Colony, Texas native led the Deacs strong effort on the glass, pulling down a conference-high 48 boards on Sunday afternoon. The Demon Deacons won the rebounding battle 48-43.
Junior forward Olivia Summiel finished with a Wake Forest season-best four blocks on the afternoon which also set her career high.
HOW IT HAPPENED
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Sophomore guard Jewel Spear got the Deacs on the board first as she drove along the baseline from the right corner and finished underneath the basket to tie the game, 2-2.
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The Deacs took the lead two possessions later when Spear was left alone at the top of the key and knocked down her first three of the game.
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Wake Forest was in front 5-4 at the 6:13 mark of the first quarter.
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The game continued to remain close for the rest of the first quarter as the Deacs again tied it up at 7-7 with just over three minutes left in the opening stanza.
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An Elise Williams triple from the top of the arc pulled the Deacs within two with a minute to play at 12-10.
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The Deacs trailed 16-10 after 10 minutes of play in Pittsburgh.
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After Pitt opened the second with a score to push its lead to eight, the Deacs responded with a 6-1 run that brought Wake Forest within three at 19-16.
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The run was capped off by a midrange jumper from senior forward Christina Morra.
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From that point in the second, the Panthers went on a 10-3 run to push their lead to double digits for the first time in the game, 29-19.
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A bucket from Spear with 53 seconds remaining in the opening two quarters helped give the Deacs confidence heading into the locker room.
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The Deacs trailed 29-21 heading into the halftime interval.
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Spear led the way for the Demon Deacons with seven points in the opening 20 minutes of the game.
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The Deacs also had a slight advantage on the glass, leading Pitt in that category 23-22.
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Alexandria Scruggs and Spear each pulled down four rebounds to lead the way for Wake Forest.
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The Demon Deacons came out and tied the game at 29-29 as they started the third quarter on a 8-0 run.
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A Niyah Becker free throw at the 6:38 mark of the period knotted up the game for the first time since the first quarter.
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Becker contributed four points during the run.
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The Deacs held the Panthers scoreless for the first 4:34 minutes of the third quarter.
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At this point of the game, Spear looked to be well on her way to her second career double-double performance as she had a team-high seven rebounds and a team-high seven points for the Demon Deacons.
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She helped the Deacs continue to maintain the lead on the boards with Wake Forest holding a 32-27 lead in that area at the 5:00 mark of the third.
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The Panthers reclaimed the lead with a 6-0 run of their own.
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Wake Forest refused to go away as a tough drive from the left wing and left-hand layup from Elise Williams forced an and-one opportunity.
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Williams converted it to make it a 35-32 game in favor of Pitt.
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The Panthers quickly pushed their advantage back to double digits with a 7-0 run over the next two minutes.
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Their 42-32 lead was the largest in the second half to that point.
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Wake Forest finished the period on a 4-0 run.
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The Deacs trailed 42-36 heading into the fourth quarter of play.
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The Demon Deacons opened up the fourth with the first two baskets to cut it to a two-point game.
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The game remained within one basket until a Pitt basket extended their lead to five points, 50-45.
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The Panthers continued to push and elevated their lead back to double digits as a part of an 8-0 run that made it 55-45 in favor of Pitt.
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A Williams free throw ended the run with 2:30 remaining in the game.
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From that point on, the Demon Deacons could only work it down to a seven-point game.
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Wake Forest fell for just the second time in program history at Pitt, 65-57.
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STANDOUT STAT
For the first time this season, sophomore guard Jewel Spear led the team in points and rebounds, becoming the first Wake Forest player this season to solely lead the team in both categories. She finished the afternoon with a game-high in both categories with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Her 10 rebounds tied her career high and she tied her highest scoring output of the conference season.
FROM HOOVER
"This is a tough one, but as I have said before it is never easy to win on the road in this league. I thought we played well in stretches but we need to carry that consistently throughout the entire game. We will get back to work this week before we look to bounce back in front of our fans Thursday." - Head Coach Jen Hoover
NEXT UP
Wake Forest returns home for the first of a home-and-home series with Clemson on Thursday night. Tipoff at LJVM Coliseum is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
Grab your spot at LJVM Coliseum at GoDeacs.com/Tickets
For those not in attendance on Thursday, the game will also air on ACC Network Extra.
