WVU Women’s Basketball Reappears in Coaches Poll

WVU Women’s Basketball made their second and highest appearance of the 2023-24 season in the USA Today Coaches Poll, ranked at No. 23 for the week of January 23.

This marks the highest ranking for the Mountaineers so far, as they’ve topped out at No. 24 in three of the past four AP Polls. Their previous highest ranking in the Coaches Poll was No. 25, awarded on January 2, but they promptly slipped out the following week after their loss to Texas.

The Mountaineers went 2-0 during the week, improving to 16-2 on the season and 5-2 in the Big 12 with dominant wins over the Houston Cougars and Cincinnati Bearcats. The week contained some of the most dominant defensive play in West Virginia’s 50 year history as a program, as the Mountaineers shut both their opponents out for the entire first period of play—the first two times they’d ever managed such a feat.

The NET rankings, which take strength of opponent and game location into account, concur with the Coaches Poll, listing the Mountaineers at No. 23.

WVU Women’s Basketball forces an average of 24.94 turnovers per game, the best of any major program. They allow 54.6 points per game, good for No. 19, while averaging 78 points themselves, good for No. 29.

West Virginia has enjoyed personal success in addition to their success as a team, with junior shooting guard JJ Quinerly recently recognized as one of the best players in the nation at her position.

The Mountaineers have a light schedule this week with just one home game, but it’s an incredibly important one: they’ll host a rematch with Iowa State, who was ranked in the AP Poll last week, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, January 27.