WVU Scores Season-Opening Win
November 14, 2008 09:51 PM | General
November 14, 2008
| North Carolina Central 31, West Virginia 70 WVU Coliseum Morgantown, W.Va. |
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| FG Made-Att | 14-46 | 29-72 | ||||||||||||
| FG Percentage | 30.4% | 40.3% | ||||||||||||
| 3P Made-Att | 0-7 | 3-15 | ||||||||||||
| 3P Percentage | 0.0% | 20.0% | ||||||||||||
| FT Made-Att | 3-12 | 9-13 | ||||||||||||
| FT Percentage | 25.0% | 69.2% |
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| Rebounds | 32 | 52 | ||||||||||||
| Turnovers | 25 | 16 | ||||||||||||
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Aided by a second-half 56.3 field-goal percentage, the West Virginia University women’s basketball (1-0) nabbed its first win of the season, defeating North Carolina Central (0-1), 70-31, at the WVU Coliseum.
Senior guard Ashley Powell led all scorers with 13 points, including one 3-pointer. The basket is only the Detroit, Mich., native’s fifth career 3-pointer. Powell ended the day 6-10 from the field, and added five assists, two steals and two rebounds. With her five assists, Powell totals 400 career dishes and moves into a tie for ninth place with Alexis Basel (1984-87) on WVU’s career assists list.
“Ashley Powell picked it up in the second half and got the break going and started making good decisions,” Coach Mike Carey says. “She had five assists and two turnovers which is good.”
Senior Takisha Granberry added 11 points with a 5-12 effort from the field, while freshman Dominique Dixon equaled Granberry’s point-total off the bench, going 5-7 from the field and 1-2 from the 3-point line.
The Mountaineers were also dominant on the glass, grabbing 52 total rebounds, with four student-athletes capturing seven each. WVU’s 26 offensive rebounds is a program-best mark under Carey. WVU height advantage also helped it outscore NCCU 50-20 in the paint.
The Eagles were led by junior forward Jori Nwachukwu’s nine points and 10 rebounds.
With WVU up 17 points at the start of the second half, NCCU attempted a comeback, as Nwachukwu and senior forward Keyonta Thacker scored four quick points for the Eagles. Powell and Dixon’s 21 combined second-half points sparked an offensive turnaround for the Mountaineers, as they withstood the early surge from the Eagles and strung together three separate double-digit scoring streaks to suffocate any chances NCCU had of climbing back into the game.
“Defensively, we played the 2-3, and they struggled from the perimeter so we stayed in the 2-3,” Carey explained. “I thought we did better in the second half and we executed the break better in the second half.”
Both squads struggled out of the gate in the first half, as neither shot better than 30% from the field. Up 17-12 with 4:31 remaining, the Mountaineers finally wielded their strength over the Eagles, as Powell’s 3-pointer sparked a WVU 12-0 scoring streak to close the first stanza.
Eleven Mountaineers saw action in the season opener and scored 28 points, while NCCU’s bench managed only 10 points. The Mountaineers outscored the Eagles in points off turnovers (31-6), second-chance points (19-6) and fast-break points (18-2).
“They didn’t have much size, but at least we got on the offensive boards and that is how we scored in the first half,” says Carey. “We weren’t hitting any first shots, but we were hitting our second shots and that’s how we got the lead. We have to build on this. There are some positives and some negatives, but we just have to build.”
The Mountaineers continue their four-game season-opening home stand this Sunday, Nov. 16, as they play host to Iona at 2 p.m. It is the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
