WVU Women’s Basketball Claims Rematch Against Iowa State

WVU Women’s Basketball claimed their rematch against a dangerous Iowa State Cyclones team on Saturday, Jan. 27, riding a 30-point, five steal day from junior guard JJ Quinerly on the way to an 84-78 victory.

Senior forward Kylee Blacksten helped keep the No. 24 ranked Mountaineers in it during the first half, scoring 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting while the rest of the team converted just 37.5 percent of their shots. Lauren Fields added eight points in that time, putting an exclamation point on the first period of play with a buzzer-beating three-pointer from the logo’s Eastern Panhandle. Fellow guard Jayla Hemingway set up the shot, snatching the Cyclones’ long inbound pass out of the air and flipping it forward to the driving Fields.

Each team made five of eight three-point attempts in a back and forth, sharpshooting second period that saw the Cyclones take a narrow 40-38 lead into the half. Iowa State kept the scoring pressure up out of the half, staying one step ahead of the Mountaineers for much of the third period thanks to a 12 point outburst from standout freshman Audi Crooks.

Quinerly Catches Fire

The Mountaineers’ best player started to find her rhythm at the same time, though, as Quinerly caught fire on the way to a 22-point second half. West Virginia closed the third quarter on a 10-1 run, flipping the court and taking a five-point lead into the final frame.

Jordan Harrison sank consecutive three-pointers midway through the fourth period, helping the Mountaineers open a 73-64 lead—their largest of the afternoon—and forcing Cyclones’ head coach Bill Fennelly to call a timeout.

Not a team to go away quietly, Iowa State closed the deficit to two points on two separate occasions during the last four minutes. Quinerly was there to put them away, though, responding with an immediate three on both occasions. The Mountaineers’ aggressive defense made their presence known in crunch time, allowing just two field goals in that span.

WVU Women’s Basketball moves to 17-2 on the season (6-2 Big 12). The home stand continues on Tuesday, Jan. 30, when the Mountaineers host the UCF Knights at 7 p.m.