WVU Women’s Basketball Grinds Out Sloppy Win Over Temple

They hadn’t played in a live game for more than a week, and at times that rust was readily apparent, but WVU Women’s Basketball still managed to pick up a 68-46 win over the Temple Owls on Sunday, Dec. 15.

JJ Quinerly, who missed the No. 15 Mountaineers’ Dec. 6 win over ETSU with a wrist injury, made her way back into the starting lineup and took the court for 26 minutes, picking up 11 points, seven rebounds and a technical foul, a puzzling fourth quarter call without any egregious behavior to accompany it.

The Mountaineers committed 18 turnovers, one more than Temple did, making 42 percent of their shots and 36 percent of those from three. The Owls fared even worse in the face of West Virginia’s aggressive defense, making just 24 percent of their shots overall.

Kyah Watson led the field with 15 points — tied with Temple senior Tiarra East — and made it a double-double with ten accompanying rebounds. Junior forward and Paris, France native Célia Rivière added 12 points and eight rebounds off the bench, nailing 80 percent of her shots as a dependable option in the low post, something the Mountaineers have lacked at times during the past two seasons.

The Mountaineers’ shooting improved consistently from period to period, starting with a miserable 27.8 percent clip in the first that allowed Temple to stay within one possession, 16-13. West Virginia fared slightly better in the second quarter but managed to take a ten point halftime lead regardless, limiting the Owls to just three made shots for the duration.

While they never looked dominant, WVU Women’s Basketball managed to keep the Owls at arm’s reach, coasting to an 18 point win in their last tune up before Big 12 play begins at Colorado at 8 p.m. on Satuday, Dec. 21.

For a related story, the WVU women entered the week staying put in the AP poll.