Pitt defeats North Carolina for first ACC victory

Pitt women’s basketball coach Lance White said a combination of character and confidence came together among his players Thursday night, leading his team to its first ACC victory of the season.

Senior forward Danielle Garven scored a career-high 27 points, and Pitt (10-16, 1-11) rolled to a 91-78 victory against North Carolina (15-11, 6-6) at Petersen Events Center.

While shooting 59 percent from the field, Pitt scored its most points in an ACC game since joining the conference in 2013.

“First off, I am extremely excited and proud of the way that our team played today,” said White, who won his first ACC game as Pitt’s coach. “Again, you can talk so much about the character of these young women that come to battle every day, and they have done it so far this year without a lot of outcome.

“We kept talking that it was coming if we keep the course and keep fighting, then great things are going to happen. And tonight, a great thing happened. They never doubted. We had been talking about confidence, confidence in shooting it, and confidence in who they are, and to see it come together was really rewarding as a coach.”

Garven hit 13 of her 18 field-goal attempts while grabbing seven rebounds and contributing two assists in 34 minutes. Senior Cassidy Walsh (Seton LaSalle) also had a career night with 22 points, five rebounds and three assists. She shot 8 for 10 from the floor, including 6 for 8 from behind the 3-point arc.