WVU Women’s Basketball Wins Battle of the Mountaineers

WVU Women’s Basketball continued their unbeaten run to begin the season on Tuesday, Nov. 20, taking down the Appalachian State Mountaineers 79-51 at the Hope Coliseum.

The win also marked Mark Kellogg’s 500th of his career.

No. 500‼️

Congrats @CoachKellogg12 pic.twitter.com/uKCOfEvAGk

— WVU Women's Basketball (@WVUWBB) November 20, 2025

No. 23 West Virginia (5-0) forced 27 turnovers and scored 30 points off those plays, turning defense to offense on a morning when their threes (6-of-21) weren’t falling. The Mountaineers performed much better in the paint, where they scored 40 points, making 21 of 27 shots from two-point range on the day. Their strong performance inside also forced a pair of App State’s players to foul out.

Junior Houston transfer Gia Cooke led the field with 19 points, her best performance in a Mountaineers’ uniform, while Kierra Wheeler (15 points) and Jordan Thomas (10 points) also finished in double figures.

West Virginia took time to get going, making just three shots in the first five minutes as they played to a 7-7 tie. From there, they took control of the game on a 12-2 run, although Appalachian State managed to hang in the game for a time, cutting West Virginia’s lead to 19-16 with a three-pointer off a steal on their first possession of the second quarter. The home Mountaineers then didn’t allow a point for more than four minutes, pulling ahead 39-20 with some sharpshooting of their own.

West Virginia kept up their defensive pressure into the fourth period, when they led by as much as 32 points.

Up next, WVU Women’s Basketball will travel to the Bahamas, taking on McNeese State in Nassau at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 24 in the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship.

Postgame Reaction: