WVU Women Earn Win on the Road
December 07, 2011 10:18 PM | General
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The West Virginia women’s basketball team handed Syracuse its first home and BIG EAST loss of the season on Wednesday night, with a 76-72 win at the Carrier Dome.
“I’m very proud of our team,” said coach Mike Carey. “We don’t usually play well here; we’ve had some good teams come here and get beat by 25, so I’m very proud of our team to be so young and come here and get a win.”
As is usually the case with league games, the contest came down to the very last minute of play. At one point, West Virginia led by 16 with 11:22 left in regulation, but a strong 15-4 scoring run from the Orange (6-3, 0-1 BIG EAST) brought Syracuse to within five points of the lead with only 7:13 left.
The Mountaineers (6-2, 1-0 BIG EAST) were unable to take a large lead again as both teams continued to trade points. Free throws from sophomore Brooke Hampton and junior Ayana Dunning gave the team some breathing room, at 70-64, but a costly West Virginia technical foul allowed the Orange to get right back in it, bringing the score to 70-68 at the 2:45 mark.
A crucial layup from Dunning with 55 seconds to go, followed by a free throw from sophomore Taylor Palmer gave the Mountaineers a three-point lead at 73-70. Syracuse had no choice but to foul after that, allowing Hampton to step up and sink three more free throws for West Virginia to seal the win.
Dunning earned her first career double-double in the win, scoring a career-high 19 points and tying her career high for rebounds with 15. She was one of four Mountaineers to post a double figure scoring performance, as junior Asya Bussie tallied 19 points to tie a career-high, Hampton scored a career-high 15 points, and Palmer earned 10 points.
“Brooke (Hampton) and YaYa (Ayana Dunning) came in here and did an excellent job,” Carey added. “Asya (Bussie) can score and she has quickness so we kept going to her.”
Behind Dunning, Harlee grabbed six rebounds while Bussie grabbed four to round out the top three in rebounding.
West Virginia outshot Syracuse from both the field and beyond the arc, at 41.3 percent (26-of-63) and 26.7 percent (4-of-15) accuracy, respectively. The Orange held the advantage from the charity stripe, however, making 88.6 percent (31-of-35) of their free throws.
In fact, Syracuse scored nearly half of its point total from the free throw line, with 31 points off of costly Mountaineer fouls.
Defensively, West Virginia out-rebounded the top rebounding team in the league, pulling down 46 boards (24 offensive, 22 defensive) in comparison to Syracuse’s 39.
“I thought we did a good job, especially the first 30 minutes, on the boards because they are an excellent rebounding team,” said Carey. “We were shook up a little bit and turned the ball over a little bit, but I give them a lot of credit.”
Additionally, West Virginia’s defensive play forced 16 Syracuse turnovers, as the team also made five blocks and notched eight steals.
Syracuse was led in scoring by junior guard Carmen Tyson-Thomas, who paced the Orange with 17 points against the Mountaineer defense. She was followed by junior guard Elashier Hall who had 16 points, and senior forward Iasia Hemingway and junior center Kayla Alexander who each contributed 14 points.
“To get this win on the road at Syracuse is big for a young team; it’s big for us,” concluded Carey.
The Mountaineers return to action at the Coliseum on Saturday, Dec. 10th to host North Florida in a 12 p.m. tip.
Live stats will be provided by MSNsportsNET.com.
“I’m very proud of our team,” said coach Mike Carey. “We don’t usually play well here; we’ve had some good teams come here and get beat by 25, so I’m very proud of our team to be so young and come here and get a win.”
As is usually the case with league games, the contest came down to the very last minute of play. At one point, West Virginia led by 16 with 11:22 left in regulation, but a strong 15-4 scoring run from the Orange (6-3, 0-1 BIG EAST) brought Syracuse to within five points of the lead with only 7:13 left.
The Mountaineers (6-2, 1-0 BIG EAST) were unable to take a large lead again as both teams continued to trade points. Free throws from sophomore Brooke Hampton and junior Ayana Dunning gave the team some breathing room, at 70-64, but a costly West Virginia technical foul allowed the Orange to get right back in it, bringing the score to 70-68 at the 2:45 mark.
A crucial layup from Dunning with 55 seconds to go, followed by a free throw from sophomore Taylor Palmer gave the Mountaineers a three-point lead at 73-70. Syracuse had no choice but to foul after that, allowing Hampton to step up and sink three more free throws for West Virginia to seal the win.
Dunning earned her first career double-double in the win, scoring a career-high 19 points and tying her career high for rebounds with 15. She was one of four Mountaineers to post a double figure scoring performance, as junior Asya Bussie tallied 19 points to tie a career-high, Hampton scored a career-high 15 points, and Palmer earned 10 points.
“Brooke (Hampton) and YaYa (Ayana Dunning) came in here and did an excellent job,” Carey added. “Asya (Bussie) can score and she has quickness so we kept going to her.”
Behind Dunning, Harlee grabbed six rebounds while Bussie grabbed four to round out the top three in rebounding.
West Virginia outshot Syracuse from both the field and beyond the arc, at 41.3 percent (26-of-63) and 26.7 percent (4-of-15) accuracy, respectively. The Orange held the advantage from the charity stripe, however, making 88.6 percent (31-of-35) of their free throws.
In fact, Syracuse scored nearly half of its point total from the free throw line, with 31 points off of costly Mountaineer fouls.
Defensively, West Virginia out-rebounded the top rebounding team in the league, pulling down 46 boards (24 offensive, 22 defensive) in comparison to Syracuse’s 39.
“I thought we did a good job, especially the first 30 minutes, on the boards because they are an excellent rebounding team,” said Carey. “We were shook up a little bit and turned the ball over a little bit, but I give them a lot of credit.”
Additionally, West Virginia’s defensive play forced 16 Syracuse turnovers, as the team also made five blocks and notched eight steals.
Syracuse was led in scoring by junior guard Carmen Tyson-Thomas, who paced the Orange with 17 points against the Mountaineer defense. She was followed by junior guard Elashier Hall who had 16 points, and senior forward Iasia Hemingway and junior center Kayla Alexander who each contributed 14 points.
“To get this win on the road at Syracuse is big for a young team; it’s big for us,” concluded Carey.
The Mountaineers return to action at the Coliseum on Saturday, Dec. 10th to host North Florida in a 12 p.m. tip.
Live stats will be provided by MSNsportsNET.com.
Gold-Blue Spring Festival Fan Recap
Sunday, April 19
John Neider | April 18
Saturday, April 18
Coach Zac Alley | April 18
Saturday, April 18
Coach Rich Rodriguez | April 18
Saturday, April 18
